This project was the original seed from which Art For Civil Discourse blossomed. The mural design depicted an elephant, a donkey and their children drinking water together from a shared pond. Inga Bard designed this concept in response to the 2016 elections and her vision was a metaphor for a reality where we overcome the ever widening gap of political partisanship and work together to secure a safe habitat for our families. By inviting Flint residents to interpret this scene, Bard wanted to explore how citizens living in a town in the center of United States feel about political partisanship.
By inviting Flint residents to paint together to complete this scene she wanted to explore how they feel about political partisanship. As neighbors painted side by side, interpreting the suggested outline, Loyeva discovered that this theme did not resonate at all, because in Flint, it's corruption that is responsible for city's decay, not political partisanship.
As neighbors painted side by side, interpreting the suggested outline, Bard discovered that in Flint, it's corruption that is responsible for city's fall from grace, not political partisanship. People told her they didn't care what party their politicians belonged to, as long as the did the right thing to support the city. They also didn't want another public art about the water crisis. They just wanted to see was a big, colorful mural full of whimsy and magic, like in the prosperous cities across the nation.
