Up Against the Wall

Paula Scher’s recent murals at Queens Metropolitan Campus, a new public
middle school and high school in Forest Hills, were completed last week
as a commission for the Department of Cultural Affairs Percent for Art program, in partnership with the NYC School Construction Authority Public Art for Public Schools program. The Pentagram website  notes:

“The two murals are located in an atrium and commons at
the Metropolitan Campus and each cover approximately 2,430 square feet.
One of the murals, a view of the New York metropolitan region with a
focus on Queens, was completed this week; a second, of Metropolitan
Avenue, will be installed in October. In the murals, New York City
sprawls across the walls in vibrant color, wrapping around walls,
corners and ceiling, creating a world in a room. As in her map
paintings, locations in the murals are misspelled or misidentified;
Scher seems to be figuring out the geography along with the students,
creating a joyous sense of recognition that mirrors the
learning process.”

On the first day of school, I asked Scher about the mural and her passion for making public art:

You’ve done a lot of environmental design work lately. Where does this stand in terms of emotional attachment?
I love designing for public spaces.  I have especially enjoyed my work
for schools.  It’s wonderful to create environments that have
emotional impact.  When I went to high school, each day I walked into a
landscape of dirty beige.  No wonder I had trouble staying awake.