Virginia Shuman Young Mural Project

Hello!

We are fundraising to...

“Inspire Our Students & Elevate The Community!"

Virginia Shuman Young Public Montessori Elementary School, located in the heart of Fort Lauderdale, is a leading learning establishment in our city. 

Unfortunately, due to a lack of funding for public schools, along with a reduced budget for exterior maintenance, Virginia Shuman Young needs the support of its community to maintain its excellence. 


We, at Twenty6North Productions in conjunction with the Broward Educational Foundation , are raising money to fund Virginia Shuman Young's Arts Program through the activation of both interior & exterior murals. We are working with local artists, Stephanie Melissa, Aaron Bodden, & Carlos Solano to inspire our students & to elevate the community. Our first focus will be painting VSY’s cafeteria. At the core of their Montessori program, specific character traits called “life skills” are infused through the culture of the school. A total of 23 life skills are shared throughout the year with a different life skill introduced weekly to the school community. This allows for the staff,  students, and parents to discuss, model, and practice these skills both at school and home. Some examples include respect, responsibility, friendship, integrity, and courtesy. We look forward to making these life skills come to life on the cafeteria walls as a constant reminder of the characteristics they value each day at VSY.



We have set aside 4 main areas of focus for the interior walls:
• Cafeteria (~1,500 sq ft^3)
• “Peace” Balcony (~65 sq ft^3)
• 3 circular concrete stages & benches (~125 sq ft^2)
• Art Corridor (~1,250 sq ft^3)

Over 2,900 square feet of blank canvas wall space will be activated with bright, fun, & interactive colors & words that will transform the school in order to bring it to life.

Our first marked goal is to fundraise $40,000. At the $40,000 benchmark, $10,000 will be donated back to Virginia Shuman Young to enrich the school's arts program. The remaining balance will support the artist’s creativity, planning, prepping, execution, & materials to conduct works of art that will provide a lasting impact on our students for decades to come. 



The artists in collaboration with the PTA & school will have a date where the students will come out & assist in painting the school's concrete stages & we look forward to sharing this experience with you!

We are starting the fundraising for this project now & expect to reach our $40,000 goal in the 2020 school year. We would like for the students of VSY to start the year feeling inspired by the new artwork that will cover the once blank walls. 


For our exterior walls, Twenty6North Productions is working with an international mural artist that will put Fort Lauderdale on the forefront of mural projects by painting over 7,500 square feet of mural space. This artist has painted in over 5 continents & 17 countries. The contribution will surely elevate the community & bring about new energy to our ever-growing city. The project will commence come the start of summer.



Once we have surpassed the second benchmarked goal of $60,000, a $15,000 donation will be given to the school. The remaining balance of $45,000 will provide the artists a team in order to assist in their visions including equipment such as scaffolds, lifts, gallons of paint, etc...

During the summer of 2020, we will be reaching out to the local community to assist in this special project. We will have an activation with a meet-&-greet with the artists, along with paint stations set up where the people of Fort Lauderdale will be able to help paint the school.



Mural Project Curator & owner of Twenty6North Productions, Maxence Doytier, would like to thank his mother, Chantal Bandoni, who is the inspiration for this art project. Mrs. Bandoni has been a Broward County Art Teacher for the past 20 years & is now the Broward County Arts Facilitator. Mrs.Bandoni always taught her students the quote by Norman Vincent Peale, “Shoot for the moon. Even if you miss, you’ll land among the stars.”

We plan on taking the Virginia Shuman Young Public Montessori School Mural Project to new heights, in order to... 

“Inspire Our Students & Elevate The Community!"

We thank you for your contribution & hope you pass our art mission on to your friends & family!