This summer, Fleisher partnered with our friends at the Queen Village Neighbors Association to brighten up the Queen Street tunnel through the installation of Imagination Grove, a collaborative and temporary wheatpaste mural. Featuring fantastical creatures, fanciful flora and fauna, and whimsical dreamscapes the project asked its participants to envision what the environment of the future could look like. The completion of the project was celebrated with an opening reception on Thursday, August 4.

The drawings and designs for the mural were created by artists young and old and at all levels of experience. Fleisher teaching artists Pat Aulisio, Marie Elcin, and Miriam Singer guided their students through the process, using large-scale drawings, screenprints, and ink drawings as the building blocks. Participants in Fleisher’s programs for adults and young artists, as well as community members who attended Fleisher’s annual festival, ARTspiration!, were all involved in making the mural come to life.

The Queen Village Neighbors Association is a non-profit organization that was formed in 1969 to serve the residents of Queen Village. QVNA exists to serve the residents of Queen Village and strengthen the community by: providing a forum for public discussion of issues of concern and interest, supporting improvements to our neighborhood, our schools and our city, facilitating understanding and use of public services and acting as a channel of communication with city officials and elected representatives. For more information visit qvna.org.

Installation photo by Vita Litvak. Additional image by Pat Aulisio.