Mural club is a group of artistically inclined or skilled students that paint murals at AHS.

“Prior to now, we sent an information packet to school staff about our existence and our goals and asked for teachers to input ideas for murals around their classroom’s hallways,” art teacher and mural club sponsor Jaqueline Pappas said. “We then met as a club, brainstormed, and designed. We collaborated with the teachers involved and picked one as the favorite. That design was sent as a proposal to the Administration team for approval.”

Students find time in their schedule to work on the murals like during Pride time W4 or after school.
Things are also a little different this year.
“We used to take requests from teachers if they wanted a mural in their classroom, but we’re not allowed to do that anymore because the principal told us not to,” senior Paola Artero said.

“Mr. DeRose has a different idea for running the club and deciding about murals. He prefers the students to find an area they want to create a mural on, design that mural and then turn it in for approval. We’ve also discussed the possibility of creating murals on masonite boards – like the Atomica mural – for easier instalment and flexibility to move as needed,” Pappas said. “Several incomplete murals will be painted over. Those in the upstairs hallways in the social studies area and by the Bistro and Culinary Arts will be the first to be removed. We hope we can repaint those areas with other murals in the near future.”

Students have begun renovating a mural outside the art room in room 152.
“We are painting different popular paintings but morphing two paintings of portraits into one face and creating multiple of those for one photo,” sophomore Morgan Milman said.

Some incomplete murals will be worked on.“The mural was started a few years ago and had been worked on by multiple students. I picked up where a graduated student had left off,” Milman said.

For some members, this is their first year as part of the club and their first time ever painting a mural, which comes with a learning curve.
“This is my first time painting a mural and it’s a lot different because it’s so big. I have to step back a lot and look at the whole picture to make sure I’m getting it right” Milman said.

Unfortunately, a number of students have become frustrated with the lack of creative independence that the students have in the club. Student’s ideas for murals and creative traditions have been shot down. Some members are losing hope that the club will continue.

“Imagine painting the school when we can’t even paint the senior courtyard,” senior Michael Bekele said. “We don’t want to make the school look ‘aesthetically pleasing’, we want it to have culture.”

“I feel that the mural club was made with an intention for expression on behalf of the student body and having to put limitations on that kind of completely defies that purpose that we had to express ourselves and bring us together as a community,” Artero said.

Mural club has been a longstanding outlet for students to express themselves and the student body through art that everyone can see.

“Mural Club is a fantastic club and being the sponsor for it is a privilege to be part of. All students are incredible artists and have a deep appreciation and love for our school. This shows clearly through their work all around and I couldn’t be more honored than to work with them.”