Paul Bass Photo
An endangered insect defied the trajectory of climate change and landed in a permanent new spot on a brick wall on County Street.
The insect, a dragonfly, found the perch tucked onto the eastern side of the vacant city-owned historic Goffe Street Armory, as part of a new mural celebrated by artists and officials at an event Tuesday.
Local artists Daniel Pizarro and Mike DeAngelo (at left and center in above photo) worked with apprentice muralists (from second left) Kaelynne Hernandez, V. Ware, and Maddie LaRose and (not pictured) Luis Alfonso to create the climate-themed 255-by-50-foot mural, the city’s largest, according to Mayor Justin Elicker.
Yale’s Sustainability Project funded the $80,000 project undertaken by the city’s Department of Arts, Culture, & Tourism along with Yale’s schools of the environment, art, and architecture. It aims “to highlight the climate crisis’ disproportionate impact on communities of color, and to inspire inclusive climate solutions” by beginning with a depiction of sneakers on a telephone pole …
… to a greener city vision. In keeping with that vision, muralists used cooling paint that reflects UV rays and infrared rays to help lower the temperature of the building, reducing the A/C bill. Meanwhile, a years-long community process has begun to figure out what to put inside the deteriorating building itself.
“We learned about the endangered species” during the project, said Ware, an artist who moved here from D.C. two years ago to work for Yale’s climate initiative. “Each mural apprentice picked an insect. I picked the dragonfly. The dragonfly up there [pictured at top of story] is mine. I really love dragonflies … watching them how they float on lily pads. I love their wings. They’re iridescent.”
A butterfly landed on the wall, as well, with plans to stick around.