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COMMUNITY ARTS
PROJECT: THE DEEP EDDY MURAL
2007 - 2012
In 2011, Wanda Montemayor and a team of teachers, art therapists and students from all over Austin completed a hand made 1200 square foot mosaic mural at historic Deep Eddy pool. Integrating art therapy with local workshops, Wanda and her team spent nearly four years planning, developing and creating each of the countless individual tiles that would become part of the colossal work of art.
At the heart of Wanda’s murals, each tile tells a story, embedded in a deeper story that reflects the location's history, charm, and cultural diversity.
“I can feel how art therapy changes a community, making people have pride, raising their self esteem. The foundational part of art therapy are the relationships that you create with everyone that you make art with, and then the added bonus to community art therapy is that you have a long term visual reminder of that connection together.”
-Wanda Montemayor
Deep Eddy Pool is located in central Austin. It has a rich history in the city, once owned by A.J. Eilers and Partners who turned it into a circus like theme park with springboards, a flying trapeze, flying rings, a 40 foot diving tower, and a 70 foot slide that emptied into the pool. Early Austinites would take the trolley to the pool, enjoying the performers, as well as riding the ferris wheel and cooling off in the pool.
The mural reflects that early history and tells the story of what swimmers and bathers have enjoyed for over a century.
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The documentary, Mosaic: The Deep Eddy Mural takes us on a journey from inception through dedication and all the effort and love it took to make it happen in between. Viewers get a peek behind the curtain to understand what it takes to create of a truly monumental work of art, hardships and laughter included. Initially running on KLRU in Austin, TX, the program was picked up for distribution and was aired for many years across the country on PBS stations.
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