Two Volunteer-Driven Murals to Enliven Hudson Square

Two volunteer-driven murals are being painted in Hudson Square, in a bid to bring extra light and color to the surrounding neighborhood.

On Little Sixth Street and Dominick Avenue, the 6,000 sq. ft. “Urban Flow” is being wrapped up under the supervision of the Hudson Square Business Improvement District (HSBID). Dasic Fernandéz, a Chilean-born muralist who is based out of New York City, is handling the design.

With the blessing of the NYC Department of Transportation, the final product will transform a road abutting Spring Street Park into a kaleidoscopic swirl of vivid color. On the sunny morning of June 3, volunteers were in the process of gradually teasing out these different hues, doubling over with paintbrushes to fill in stray corners.

One joyous volunteer, Cordelia Persen, told Our Town Downtown that it was nice to be “getting a better park.” She was responsible for the “light green” swirl of the mural, and was getting the hang of doing detail work with a particular brush.

Fernandéz said that the colors were arranged in a way that would sync with “the energy that is around this street, and the pedestrian flows.” Urban furniture that will further compliment the color scheme is set to be placed in the coming days, he noted.

“We have a lot of help,” Fernadé pointed out, adding that he was set on making the work a fun and relaxing experience.

The President and CEO of the Hudson Square BID, Samara Kasyk, also made an appearance at the June 3 painting session. She provided additional detail on the mural’s color schematic, noting that it was conceived with community input based on the surrounding uses of the neighborhood.

The brighter colors at the southern end of the mural, Kasyk explained to Our Town Downtown, exemplified the “social area” represented by a local school: “Students indicated to us, in workshops that we did with them and in surveys that we did with them, that this is how they wanted to use the space. The furniture on the south side will be for convening and hanging out.”

The north side, meanwhile, is rooted in blues and greens that will typify what Kasyk called a “quiet space.”

“The furniture, the umbrellas, and the plants that we’re going to put in are going to reflect that feeling too,” she added. “People can use the plaza differently, and all enjoy it.”

The other mural that will brighten up Hudson Square is the continuation of the “Fractured Spectrum: Colors in Motion”—which has been painted in multiple phases since September 2022.

Part of the mural already graces numerous UPS loading gates at the local sorting center on Washington St., and volunteers gathered around noon on June 3 to vivify a new stretch of the building’s massive facade.

They were hosted by Publicolor, a nonprofit that steers at-risk youth into design programs and community service, with many alums serving as stewards of the day’s painting process. The volunteers themselves, meanwhile, appeared to be employees at local businesses that had partnered with Publicolor.

Two volunteers, Sasha and Simar, were painting one of the loading docks together after connecting at work. Sasha recommended volunteering as a way of “meeting new people” and getting outside, while Simar noted that it was good for people to do something “not just for yourself every once in a while.”

José Figueroa, the Director of Youth Development Programs at Publicolor, told OT Downtown that Publicolor was founded by Ruth Landy Schuman under the principle that introducing “vibrant colors and beautiful designs into a space...changes attitudes and behaviors inherently.” As befitting Publicolor’s mission of working with youth, this concept was first tested in local schools up in East Harlem.

Now, thanks to the ongoing mural in Hudson Square, Figueroa added that the community had given Publicolor feedback about a widespread positive attitude change lingering in the air.

“We’ve been hearing that it’s a boost in energy, in morale, and in the mood of people as they’re traveling through this space,” he said.