ARRAN KEARNEY
Staff Writer
Having resumed classes following spring break, the thoughts of the college must now inevitably turn towards the end of the academic year and the imminent graduation of the senior class. A relatively new tradition — where a senior artist is commissioned to paint a mural on Haury Hall — has become the most recognizable marker of this annual event. I had the pleasure of speaking with the student who founded the tradition, Lil Padro, this past week.
“I honestly believe that this year will be the fourth mural already,” said Padro, a 2020 Bethel graduate. Padro oversaw the new tradition for its first two years — with the first mural installment arriving in 2019, when she was a junior. Padro described how the idea for a mural first came to her as an answer to what she believed to be a “very bare campus.” She added that the original artist, Jesus Alba of Dallas TX, “had always wanted to paint a mural on campus.” Alba had already been employed to help paint public murals within the City of Wichita, so Padro wondered, “why shouldn’t we let him paint one for his College?”
The idea that this could become a tradition was borne from Padro’s desire “to do something for the senior class…in twenty years’ time there could be twenty murals on campus.” Padro hopes that “during their class reunions, everyone is able to go back and look at the mural that they made to represent them here at Bethel” — a comment she made in an interview for Around the Green, the College’s alumni magazine, in the summer of 2019.
Though the tradition is now well-established, the work and planning that was required in order to get it off the ground has never been fully appreciated. The President of Student Life, Sam Haynes, who began work at Bethel in 2019, made it clear that the project required “an awful lot of work — more than she [Padro] takes credit for.” Haury Hall was not the only site that was proposed for the murals — the Thresher Gym, the WAC, the FAC and even the Art Building were all considered. Indeed, Padro recalled that the idea of using “movable spaces” — large concrete canvases mounted on wheeled frames — had also been mooted, so that they could be “used at events like Fall Fest and commencement.”
Issues of practicality and finance, very prescient for Bethel in 2019, eventually led to Haury Hall being chosen as the mural site. Both Padro and Haynes agreed that the “movable space” idea had great potential for the future. Padro thought that Haury was an excellent choice in the end. “It’s the most visible space on campus - and we had a guaranteed spot for the first six years.” Padro also noted that the senior class leaving a visible memento to incoming freshmen was deeply symbolic.
Padro did admit that the project was “a lot more work than [she] thought it was going to be.” This was largely caused by the obstructions she faced in the Student Government Association. “They gave me quite a hard time,” Padro said. The original bill was vetoed, and a second reading was only permitted following amendments. “The SGA were concerned about committing future classes to the project without their permission. They thought it wouldn’t be feasible after a few years”, Haynes said.
Haynes believes that the mural was probably the most controversial subject on campus that Spring term. Padro was able to force the bill through, only after “getting the majority of the campus to sign a petition — and filling the house at the SGA meeting: we had to move the meeting to the Chapel because so many people wanted to attend.” Such investment by students in the work of the SGA was unprecedented in recent College history, and is certainly unimaginable now. It should be noted that the SGA is now “very proud to support the initiative, which represents what a senior class means to the College,” in the words of current SGAPresident Thomas Kucera, of Wichita. The delays to the project did have some positive effects. It drew together many interested parties from across campus, with funding and support provided by the Alumni Association, the Student Life Office and the Art Department (through the guidance of Rachel Epp Buller), alongside the SGA.
Question marks do still remain, however, especially surrounding the future of Haury Hall. The potential demolition and reconstruction of the freshman dormitory has long been on the table, though it remains a long-term project for administration. The continued existence of the original murals on the north-facing wall remains in some doubt. “It was always promised that they would protect the wall and build around it,” Haynes said. Padro, whilst acknowledging that this would be the ideal outcome, also noted that other possibilities were available, such as replicating the murals elsewhere.
For the time being, the project is going strong. Haynes described it as being “the most important new tradition on campus.” What began with artist Jesus Alba, and was continued in 2020 and 2021 by Blayne Stump and Adam Kroeker, respectively, will now be carried into its fourth year. President Kucera was happy to confirm that this year's muralist will be Capri Steveson-Bisom, of West Berlin, N.J.
