Quincy School Mural Sends Message of Playfulness, Community

Paint was splattered on the gloves, cargo pants and white shirt of artist Yuke Li as she was putting the “final touches” on her Chinatown mural on a sunny Friday in early June. Named “Star Gatherers,” the mural decorates Josiah Quincy Elementary School’s lower playground walls with images of kids – one is wearing a bunny-ear hat looking into a giant flower, another is riding on a pink tiger-like creature, and others are playing ball. A huge dragon mingles among them, and every scene is splashed in vivid colors – deep blues, taxi-cab yellows, candy pinks, grape-juice purples.

“I got to know the school’s values,” said Li, of when she was preparing to create the mural earlier this spring, after winning a request for proposals by the City of  Boston's Canvas of Culture program. Yi said she learned the dragon was important to the Quincy School, so she includes it prominently in the paintings.

Yuke Li poses in front of the 'Star Gatherers' mural at the Josiah Quincy Elementary School in early June. Photo by Adam Smith.

“Also, the kids love sports and a lot kids are playing music.”

The Boston Art Commission approved Li's design scheme, saying the mural "stands as a visual narrative" of immigration, education, community identity, student growth and the school's core values.

"We are incredibly excited to celebrate Yuke and bring this beautiful vision to life for our students," said Josiah Quincy School Principal Cynthia Soo Hoo in a statement. "This mural encapsulates the joy, diversity, and expansiveness of our school community."

Li, who’s worked on several murals across the United States – as far west as Arizona and as nearby as her home city of New York – said she usually uses a limited pallet of colors on her paintings but in this case she used more because of the large size of the multi-section mural that adorns the concrete retaining walls of the playground. Also, she said, she wanted to echo some existing colors, such as the blue doors of the school and the Quincy School’s signature yellow.

“Since it’s for kids,” Li said, “I wanted it to be playful.”

Yuke Li's 'Star Gatherers' mural at the Josiah Quincy Elementary School in early June. Photo by Adam Smith.

Li is used to creating works for kids. Her recent projects include illustrating a children’s book by Doreen Klein Robinson called “A Place to Pray” and working with Bill Plympton for a project at the Plymptoons studio.

"I love Yuke's art. She has a totally unique style that is visually compelling and offers a wonderful perspective," Bill Plympton told Sampan by email. 

Li said for this particular mural she first sent out a questionnaire to the Chinatown community to see what they wanted included and then met with the school. Then she created a sketch on Photoshop, revised it and refined it, and then recruited dozens of volunteers and got to work in May.

“It’s like a huge coloring book,” she said of the project, which is set to be completed for a ceremony on June 11 at 4:30 p.m.

Li studied illustration as visual essay at the School of Visual Arts in New York where she earned her Masters in Fine Arts.

When asked how she got into the arts, Li said it was something to “kill time” when she was little.

And then said Li, who is originally from Changsha in China’s Hunan province, “The true story is Chinese parents want you to have something beyond academics, so I had to choose between painting and dance. I did not want to choose dance.”

But, she said, seriously, she enjoys working on projects for kids.

“It makes you feel good,” she said, “their pureness.”

Yuke Li's 'Star Gatherers' mural at the Josiah Quincy Elementary School in early June. Photo by Adam Smith.