About
As part of Maine College of Art & Design's Pride celebration, Elyse Grams MFA '20 organized a mural on the Joanne Waxman Library windows featuring work by Jakob Flores Figueroa (Animation & Game Art '26), Milo McNeel (Printmaking ‘25), and McKenna Bommarito (Sculpture ‘26).The mural is on display through the end of the month, and viewable from Congress Street. Learn more about the featured work below.
Window One: Jakob Flores Figueroa (Animation & Game Art '26) representing the Students of Color Coalition
Xochipilli (Soach-ee-PEEL-ee), the Prince of the Flowers, is the Aztec god of ecstasy, the state of divine connection. He is the patron of dancers, musicians, writers and painters, as well as protector of people we would know today as "queer". I chose to depict Xochipilli as a reminder that not all societies have historically shunned queer individuals. Xochiquetzal whose name also appears on the window is his female counterpart.
With my imagery I am looking to North America's past, to the Mixeca and Nahual's Teotl. "Pride in Intersectionality" is important to the design because it is important to advocate for the Queer BIPOC community to both feel comfortable and find joy in being queer and being bipoc. It highlights how both of these identities have marginalized us throughout the past 400 years, as they became intertwined with colonialism and conquest. As someone who is both Queer and BIPOC, I have found that it is often easier to be queer than it is to be BIPOC. You can hide being queer, but you cannot hide your skin. It is people who like me who must learn to live in this intersectionality, and find a way to thrive in it, like our ancestors might have.
Window Two: Pride Flags
BIPOC Pride & Trans Pride Flags
Window Three & Four: Milo McNeel (Printmaking ‘25)
This is an excerpt of “All of it to Say” a poem by queer/trans writer, artist, & instructor Ever Jones. Ever’s work collapses binaries & resists social constructions, embracing intersections & celebrating and / & / or / both / also / multiple / question / etc. The imagery of the star people reflects the celestial bodies of queer people, referenced in the poem.
Window Five: McKenna Bommarito (Sculpture ‘26)
This work directly highlights our queer community at MECA&D. Depicted in the mural are two queer faculty member mentors: sabine stxrm & Ben Spaulding, as well as four current students who identify as queer: Margaux, Winslow, Cam, & Tom who are all friends of the artist.
In addition to being a professor, Ben is a local DJ who often brings together our queer community through music both inside and outside of the College. In the mural he is seen DJing while everyone else is dancing. The style is simplified to allow students and other viewers to see themselves within the work.
Window Six: “Give us our roses while we’re still here”
This quote has become the rallying cry for the Trans Day of Remembrance, observed on November 20th every year to honor the memory of transgender people whose lives were lost in acts of anti-transgender violence.