A colorful addition to Hillview Middle School’s campus, the new mural is hard to miss. The newly added mural, painted by local artist Jessica Martin, sparked mixed reactions from both students and teachers. While some thought it was eye-catching, others found it unattractive.
After a student vote across campus, stripes were selected as the final design to be painted on the PAC wall. However, when the mural was painted, many students were dissatisfied with the interpretation of the chosen design. “It’s really, really, really bad and ugly,” eighth grader Kian Motamedi said. “The colors don’t go together, and it’s too big.”
Reactions from students ranged from mild annoyance to sharp criticism. Some believed the mural added a bright and exciting piece of artwork to lift people’s spirits, while others viewed it with dislike, describing it as over the top and disruptive. “It’s not very organized, and it looks like a kindergartner could do it,” eighth grader Emma Wang said.
“I think it’s a waste of money, honestly, because most of the students in our school don’t like it,” seventh grader Joaquim Boffa Gil said. “It’s way too bright, and when I’m going in between classes and I see it, it kind of disrupts my mental clarity.”
Other students found the mural appealing and appreciated the fun and color it adds to the campus. “It’s nice. I thought at first, when it wasn’t there, it was just plain. I didn’t think too much about it. But now that the mural is here, it makes the school look a little bit better,” sixth grader Brandon Gonzalez said.
“I like it because it’s super colorful and it adds a lot of personality to the wall there at Hillview, and people can see it along the street,” Office Manager Kathy Garagozzo said.
Hillview Art Teacher Anna Kogan is concerned about the mural’s ability to hold up over time. “[Martin] did one layer of color on brown walls, so I don’t know how it will look like in a couple years,” Kogan said.
While students were invited to participate in the painting of the mural with Martin, seventh grade English Language Arts teacher Jessica Ross felt that the students should have had a larger role in design and that the mural did not accurately represent the school. “We have an incredible arts program at Hillview, and our teacher, Ms. Kogan, and our students who are involved in it, create beautiful art pieces that are student driven, and I think that our school needs to reflect that. Instead, we had an anonymous, unknown artist come onto campus and create a mural that I don’t personally believe reflects the spirit of Hillview,” she said.
“I honestly think the mural is ugly,” an anonymous teacher said. “I don’t think that it makes the school look better. I would rather have had the brown wall back.”
The Parent-Teacher Organization funded the mural, using $30,000 in district funding. Many students and teachers were disappointed with this use of the money and believed that it could have been spent in much more beneficial ways.
“I can’t help but question, when our district is looking at cutting positions and cutting funding for other resources, why [did] we put so much money into this mural?” Ross said.
Another anonymous teacher also commented on the funding. “I think $30,000 could have been better spent on so many other things within the district, within the school, than a mural that, to me, just doesn’t look finished,” he said.
After learning that two more murals will be painted, one in the gym hall by Martin, and another on the back of the stage, an anonymous teacher expressed concern. “Hopefully I won’t have eyesight to have to look at it,” he said.
Hillview’s new mural was a definite cause for debate and derision on campus. With two more murals planned, teachers and students hope to see pleasing results that unite the campus rather than divide it.
