Client: Westchester County MRF

Location: Yonkers, NY, United States

Completion date: 2014

Project Team

Artist

Piero Manrique

Manrique Mural Art and Design

Client

New Rochelle Department of Economic Development

City of New Rochelle

Overview

In 2013, the Westchester County Department of Environmental Services initiated a project to create an art gallery at the Education and Conference Center of the Westchester County Material Recovery Facility (MRF). Located in Yonkers, NY, the Center hosts seminars on recycling and offers tours of the MRF to school classes, scout troops and special interest groups. Manrique Mural Art and Design, led by Piero Manrique, was approached with a request to design large-scale murals throughout the space.

Goals

Asked to choose an inspiring theme for the murals, MMAD decided to create a series of nature scenes which would remind visitors of the importance of recycling for the protection of the environment and its animal inhabitants. The goal in designing these murals was for viewers to experience their inherent links to the land and wild animals, and to realize the interrelationship between themselves and the natural world, and to not only connect to the pieces, but to feel inspired by them.

Process

Upon entering the lobby of the Center, visitors first walk beneath a 10-ft x 24-ft skylight shaft which features a cascading waterfall four-sided mural. The changing natural light from the skylight at different times of the day affects the colors in a mesmerizing fashion. Moving farther into the lobby, visitors look up at the ceiling to see MMAD's 30-ft. x 8-ft. mural of the sky with eagles soaring above a mountain range.

In the Center's classroom, MMAD created a floor to ceiling wall mural measuring 35-ft x 8-ft of an underwater scene filled with exotic turtles and coral reefs. This mural is a particular favorite with the school classes that visit the Center. For the Center's conference room, MMAD was asked to create a timeline mural depicting the reclamation of a portion of the shoreline along the Hudson river which was once used as an extensive garbage dump. The 40-ft. x 8-ft. mural begins with a truck dumping trash at one end, and flows into a view of the land as it appears today covered by grass and flowers.