Josie Bunnell '19 Collaborates on Burlington Mural
Josie Bunnell '19 has collaborated with fellow artist Raphaella Brice on a mural commissioned by the Burlington City Arts and the city's Office of Racial Equity, Inclusion and Belonging as part of the Juneteenth celebration.
Installed earlier this summer on the east wall of Fletcher Free Library in Burlington, "Black Freedom, Black Madonna & the Black Child of Hope" features a dramatic mother-and-child motif in vibrant colors against a swirling black and gray background.
For the mural design, Brice called on both her Haitian heritage (her parents were immigrants) and her Catholic upbringing. Her Madonna is a representation of Erzulie Dantor, a fierce and protective Vodou spirit who is associated with the country's hard-won independence from France in 1804.
Brice and Bunnell were both recent artists-in-residence at Generator, Burlington's makerspace, which led to their collaboration of skills; Brice created her design as a digital illustration, but she had never worked with vinyl and didn't know how to use a vinyl cutter. Bunnell, who studied printmaking at Bennington College, has worked with the material often and teaches a class on vinyl cutting.
"Black Freedom, Black Madonna & the Black Child of Hope" will remain in place for at least a year.