Annie Dong

Date of Award

2024

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Bachelors

Department

Humanities

Second Department

Social Sciences

First Advisor

Anderson, Kim

Second Advisor

Barton, Michelle

Area of Concentration

Psychology and Art

Abstract

This thesis project integrates social practice and multiculturalism theory with public art murals and involves producing art in both gallery spaces and public spaces resulting in two large mural installations that examine the benefits that public art and social activism have on communities, drawing inspiration from artists including Judy Baca and Michelle Angela Ortiz. Through this work, I examine both the role of public murals as a catalyst for community building as well as the impact of adolescent participation in the creation of community murals on their well-being using the Basic Psychological Needs Satisfaction Theory (BPNS). As part of the thesis, the Boys & Girls Club teen participants of Manatee County were given pre and post-surveys, including the BPNS questionnaire, to evaluate their experience with a community art mural project. While the survey results did not show any clear pattern of change, the qualitative data revealed positive feedback from participants who felt more connected to their peers and inspired by the project. In addition to the mural I facilitated with the youth of Manatee County, my personal mural project and a series of smaller painted studies explore themes of home, migration, belonging, and memories through public art murals incorporating Chinese symbolism as a form of social activism. In my mural, I explore a visual iconography that breaks patriarchal traditions by incorporating feminine flowers and patterns and making it accessible to the community, fighting oppression through vivid and joyful colors.

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