The WebPT mural project in the Warehouse District is halfway finished, according to the lead artist Miguel Godoy.
The project first opened to the public on March 3 and has welcomed community participation every Friday and Saturday in the month since then.
“Yesterday we had over a hundred people come through here,” Godoy said. “Fridays have been the biggest days because companies have come out… Saturdays are really the community days.”
The WebPT mural project is named after the Arizona-based physical therapy software company. The idea for the mural was initiated by WebPT President, Heidi Jannenga. Godoy was recruited to help design and create a mural to be displayed on the south side of the WebPT building in the Warehouse District.
The mural is designed with credit to the city of Phoenix and the businesses and history of the Warehouse District.
“What we’re doing is celebrating the past, the present and the future; what’s happening at the Warehouse District,” Godoy added.
Due to the size of the mural, Godoy dissected the mural into multiple pieces, organizing the images into large squares with shapes inside linked to a number. This technique simplifies the process for painters who participated in the month-long community event.
The image of the phoenix represents the new start-up tech companies establishing themselves in The District.
The image of George Washington Carver is to pay homage to the Carver Museum in downtown Phoenix. The image of the woman is to pay homage to the tortilla factory that is now the WebPT building.
The desert bloom on the right corner of the mural represents the agricultural aspect of The District, displaying crops and produce that once came through there.
Integrated into the mural is a helix to denote the healthcare industry, and the circuitry represents the technology companies.
Included in the mural are QR codes that will direct people to the Phoenix Warehouse District website or other sites linked to the industry or company represented in the mural.
Phoenix resident, Ivonne Godinez and her 10-year-old son volunteered at three out of the four weekends. She said contributing to the mural was her and her son’s way of giving back to the community that has given to her.
“It’s our free time. We can be home letting him play video games, but right now I’m actually teaching him to do something creative using his imagination,” Godinez said. “He forgets all about his electronics because it’s breaking him away, giving him something new.”
After volunteering for the first time, high school student Kaleb Werku and his friends also returned twice to contribute to the mural.
“It was relaxing. It was just fun and it was kind of just like an escape from everything else, just chilling here and painting with the community,” he said.
With the project halfway done due to the contributions of the community, Godoy along with two other artists and a couple of volunteers will be completing the rest of the mural. The WebPT mural is set to be fully completed by July of 2019.
“This process lends very well to a community effort,” Godoy said. “Everybody that comes, they just enjoy it. The paint by numbers is like a meditative process, like a mindful exercise almost…it’s contagious.”
Contact the reporter at atpulu@asu.edu.
