Aspinwall artist, Spectrum Charter students unveil mural in Monroeville

Spectrum Charter School in Monroeville has a theme that its staff and students try to live out each day: “Look for the good.”

There was plenty of good on display Wednesday night, as students joined resident artist Alison Zapata to unveil a 16-by-8-foot mural that will welcome everyone who comes in the front door.

“I really liked getting to work with my friends from school,” said Cheyenne Ashley, 15, a sophomore from Penn Hills who attends Spectrum. “I really like sketching and drawing, copying things and adding details to them.”

Zapata, 47, of Aspinwall, has worked as a resident artist with the PA Council on the Arts’ Artists in Education program since 2006.

“I’ve worked at places like FamilyLinks, the Latino Community Center (in Pittsburgh’s Cultural District) where I’m working now, with senior citizen program and with kids in Pittsburgh Public Schools,” Zapata said. “I love jumping into communities where the arts kind of animates not just the students but the space where we’re working.”

Nearly the entire back wall of the school’s entrance is taken up by the mural, which features a giant moon painted in blues and purples, rising above a large forest with “Look For The Good” occupying the center in bright yellow letters.

Spectrum Charter is a small, tuition-free, public charter school structured to meet the needs of school-aged children and young adults who do not learn well in traditional classroom settings due to cognitive, communication, and sensory challenges; including students with autism spectrum disorders.

And while not each of the school’s 40 students ended up helping with the mural, every class got a chance to contribute.

“I mostly enjoyed being able to participate, make time to sketch things out, work on the details and look at the whole idea of ‘Look For The Good,’” said Landon Armbrust, 17, a Spectrum junior from McKeesport. “I really enjoy arts. I do some of my own creations and stuff.”

Amanda Dollish-Kotts, an administrative assistant at Spectrum, said working with Zapata has brought additional creativity to teachers’ lesson plans.

“I think it helped us expand our own horizons and start incorporating art into other parts of the school day,” Dolling-Kotts said.

Some of that work was on display alongside the mural, which students helped unveil with Zapata for a group of parents, administrators and staff Wednesday evening. Students in the school’s world cultures class created artwork inspired by countries like Brazil, France and China, and created original pieces based on the styles of several well-known artists.

Zapata said the mural, itself, reflects the time she spent with students thinking about the deeper meaning behind “Look For the Good.”

“We thought about the notion that, even when times are tough, it’s important to keep your eyes open and focus on the good in a situation,” she said.