Header: Sean Hemmerle
A new glass artwork by Julia Whitney Barnes has been installed at The Magnet School of Multicultural Humanities (P.S. 253) in Brooklyn, New York, as part of a continuing collaboration between Pulp Studio and Public Art for Public Schools (PAPS), a division of the New York City School Construction Authority. The artistic project turned the school’s main entryway into an immersive visual space, visible from the street, the lobby, and the second floor.
Brighton Botanical
Titled Brighton Botanical, the installation spans over 24 feet in width and 14 feet in height and features digitally printed images of 53 different flowers. The mural was built using Pulp Studio’s D2G process, which combines ceramic frit application on the first surface of the glass with a laminated composition that includes a quarter-inch Low Iron PGI opaque interlayer. This allows for depth and intense colours, giving the floral forms a layered and vibrant appearance.
Each flower portrayed in the mural can thrive in Brooklyn, but this wasn’t the main reason they were chosen: they symbolise the rich diversity of students who pass through them daily. As artist Julia Whitney Barnes explains:
“The symbolism of each flower played an important role in my selection process. Several flowers, such as echinacea, have important medicinal properties; others, like the lotus, are significant in literature; and the sunflower, an essential food source for both humans and animals, symbolises strength, resilience, happiness and positivity.”
This is the third collaboration between Pulp Studio and PAPS, following previous installations at other New York City public schools, including “Neighborhood” by Justin Kim at P.S. 46 Alley Pond School in Queens and “REMEMBER WHEN TOMORROW CAME” by Ghost of a Dream at P.S. 653 Pacific Park Campus in Brooklyn.
This new chapter is a unique decorative feature and a point of reference for students, inviting them to delve into science, literature, and history, and share what they learn after eventually blooming.
