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    • Wilmington Councilman leads effort to convert boarded buildings
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    Wilmington Councilman leads effort to convert boarded buildings

    Harry Posted on

    By Esteban Parra
    | News Magazine

    These doors and windows don’t open, but together they can bring some beauty and hope to devastated city neighborhoods.

    For the past five months, Wilmington Councilman Nnamdi O. Chukwuocha has been leading a group of children and volunteer artists, paintbrush in hand, in transforming vacant boarded-up buildings.

    They hope the artwork, which they call Freedom Art Installations, will help illuminate the perspective of rundown communities and encourage pride in neighborhoods.

    “Art transforms the lives of not only individuals but also communities,” Chukwuocha said.

    Chukwuocha said the group started with structures in West Center City but has expanded to other parts of the city. They have painted 21 buildings so far.

    “These are little things we can do to make a difference in our community,” he said.

    Once a building is selected, usually one in the hands of the city or housing authority, Chukwuocha paints the boarded windows and doors with a base. The next morning, Chukwuocha and the volunteers descend on the building and the creative work begins.

    Fake windows are often painted blue (sometimes in different shades) and framed in white or black.

    The plywood through which the door will enter is a canvas by local artist Al Hinson. Sometimes it creates a simple, realistic four-panel door. Sometimes he designs more elaborate entries that include multiple panels, windows, or some type of artwork.

    “They have a lot of abandoned houses that need fixing up,” said Hinson, a lifelong city resident.

    Hinson said that when he heard about the project, he joined the project primarily because he thought it would be valuable to work with young people. And he liked the idea of ​​adding some beauty to neighborhoods.

    “It helps them focus on the positive things in the community,” Hinson said. “Because that’s where it all starts, in the community.”

    Inspiring change

    Chukwuocha and his group hope their campaign will bring neighbors together to make changes for the better.

    “It’s inspiring,” said Jane Golden, executive director of the Mural Arts Program in Philadelphia, which has created more than 3,000 works of art. “I think it gets people thinking about the possibilities.”

    Golden said in the communities where his group works, murals have become signs that residents care and that things can change. But he said such programs must work strategically with the community to make a difference.

    “Art isn’t the answer to everything, but I think it can be a really profound start,” he said. “And then we’re talking with the neighborhood, with the community, with the city, ‘Where do we go from here?’ It is the duty of the organization to think like this. How can art continue to inspire?’”

    When his group was founded 30 years ago, they were part of an anti-graffiti campaign and were able to raise funds to hire young people for clean-up work. Once a mural is erected, the lot tends to stay clear, Golden said.

    But, he said, “This isn’t something that happens overnight.”

    A simple jacket

    Michael Kalmbach, director of Wilmington’s Creative Vision Factory, said he’s seen a simple coat of paint make changes for the better.

    “I feel like it really changes the environment,” said Kalmbach, who completed the 200-foot-tall mural over the summer on the 1100 block of East Seventh Street, across from the office of the Kalmar Nyckel Foundation, which commissioned the project. .

    Eager to partner with Chukwuocha, Kalmbach said he wants to bring in adults as well as youth and expand the project to the entire exterior, even down a block.

    “There are a lot of buildings that have been neglected,” he said.

    There are more than 1,400 vacant buildings in Wilmington, and 619 of them contain rooming houses.

    “Art is a destructive act,” he said. “To tap into that kind of destructive nature, but then do something that incorporates that positive gesture, I think that’s really important.”

    Last Sunday, 17-year-old Myrical Wiggins stopped by the group’s latest project at Sixth and Willing streets before heading to church. He spent several hours painting the building’s front, side and basement windows blue.

    “It was fun,” Wiggins said, showing his blue palms. “I didn’t think I’d get this involved.”

    Wiggins, who lives near where he paints, said he has noticed some of the other Freedom Arts Installations with interest.

    “You don’t see the board anymore. “You see the color,” he said. “It’s really nice. I was amazed.”

    Donation required

    Chukwuocha and volunteers are armed with supplies purchased using money from Delaware Interfaith Community Housing, West Center City Futures and the Christina Cultural Arts Center. But Chukwuocha said they are always looking for more people to donate supplies and also offer abandoned conspicuous things.

    “Everybody loves art,” Chukwuocha said. “If someone tells me they think the wood here is better than what we made, I will buy the wood and put it there myself.

    “I’m sure the community supports the project we’re doing.”

    Lillian Henry, who lives near the building that was painted Sunday, must agree. Henry watched with interest as young people and adults worked on the structure.

    “I think it’s great,” he said. “Anything that improves the neighborhood will help everyone and the city. “This is a wonderful thing.”

    Contact Esteban Parra at 324-2299 or [email protected].

    Harry
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