2008 Woodie Awards
Green Street Café muralist speaks: An interview with artist Jeff Mack
Megan Burbank
Issue date: 9/21/06 Section: Arts
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As a follow-up to last week's article on the Green Street Café's mural created in protest to Smith's upcoming science and engineering building, the artist behind it describes his process, the impending destruction of the mural and the meaning behind his art.
Megan Burbank: What is the history of this mural? Where did the idea come from and how long have you been working on it? Additionally, how did you decide to paint it in the cafe?
Jeff Mack: The mural's history began when business representatives from Smith College told the owners of the Green Street Café that they planned to use the adjacent property to build a new engineering complex which may eventually engulf the neighborhood. Since Smith College owns many of the properties in the Green Street Neighborhood including the Café, the owners of the restaurant say they are being forced to leave. They said that the college offered to compensate them financially, but they found that the cost of starting over in another section of Northampton is more than Smith was willing to provide. As a result, it seems likely that the Green Street Café will have to close along with most of the other businesses, including East Heaven Hot Tubs. Also many of the neighborhood residents are being forced to relocate as their apartments will be destroyed. Many of them do not own vehicles, and benefit from a combination of affordable rent and their ability to walk to town. They may not be able to find another situation that offers both advantages within Northampton.
As a protest, the Green Street Café owners decided to invite a local muralist to make a statement about the demolition of the neighborhood. They asked artists to submit ideas for the project and hired three independent judges to select one of the proposals. My design was the one they selected.
The mural is titled "Last Staff Supper at Green Street Café." It depicts 13 people who work or have worked at the cafe and who contributed to the unique spirit of the place. The painting is modeled after Leonardo Da Vinci's mural "The Last Supper," with all of my characters striking poses reminiscent of those in Da Vinci's. In my design, the "Christ" figure is an architect unfurling a blueprint of the new Smith College engineering building, while the "Apostle" characters gathered around the dinner table are reacting with shock and dismay. Looming behind them and the familiar architecture of the neighborhood are cranes and wrecking balls coming to demolish everything.
Megan Burbank: What is the history of this mural? Where did the idea come from and how long have you been working on it? Additionally, how did you decide to paint it in the cafe?
Jeff Mack: The mural's history began when business representatives from Smith College told the owners of the Green Street Café that they planned to use the adjacent property to build a new engineering complex which may eventually engulf the neighborhood. Since Smith College owns many of the properties in the Green Street Neighborhood including the Café, the owners of the restaurant say they are being forced to leave. They said that the college offered to compensate them financially, but they found that the cost of starting over in another section of Northampton is more than Smith was willing to provide. As a result, it seems likely that the Green Street Café will have to close along with most of the other businesses, including East Heaven Hot Tubs. Also many of the neighborhood residents are being forced to relocate as their apartments will be destroyed. Many of them do not own vehicles, and benefit from a combination of affordable rent and their ability to walk to town. They may not be able to find another situation that offers both advantages within Northampton.
As a protest, the Green Street Café owners decided to invite a local muralist to make a statement about the demolition of the neighborhood. They asked artists to submit ideas for the project and hired three independent judges to select one of the proposals. My design was the one they selected.
The mural is titled "Last Staff Supper at Green Street Café." It depicts 13 people who work or have worked at the cafe and who contributed to the unique spirit of the place. The painting is modeled after Leonardo Da Vinci's mural "The Last Supper," with all of my characters striking poses reminiscent of those in Da Vinci's. In my design, the "Christ" figure is an architect unfurling a blueprint of the new Smith College engineering building, while the "Apostle" characters gathered around the dinner table are reacting with shock and dismay. Looming behind them and the familiar architecture of the neighborhood are cranes and wrecking balls coming to demolish everything.
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