Mt. Jewett Heritage Mural

Tawney Johnson

Swedish Folk Songs

My Noticings

• It’s BIG• There is a lot

going on

• The colors are very bright

• Viking Ship is main focal point

• A lot of nature

• Historical content

• Some things I recognized right away

• Some of the paint is chipping away

Questions & Inquiries

• Who is the artist?• Why was it painted?• How long did it take to paint this?• How many people painted it?• How big is it?• What are the different colored birds on the bottom?• What are the flowers in the bottom left corner?• What kinds of materials were used for this mural?• Is there an official title for this mural?• How long did it take to draw out and plan this?

Research and Answers

Kong Ho• Professor of art at the University of

Pittsburgh at Bradford• Interdisciplinary arts program

director at UPB• Participated in more than 90

international and regional exhibitions including 14 solo exhibitions

• His works have been exhibited in the United States, Canada, Macedonia, Japan, China, Thailand, and Malaysia

kongho.com

Research and Answers• Completed summer of 2007• Located on the side of the Odd

Fellows building• Building owner came up with idea of

mural to promote U.S. Route 6 as a heritage corridor

• Designed with elements of the region and of Swedish heritage

• Took about 5 months to complete—which included building the scaffolding, wall preparation, and painting

• Size is 3,332 square feet (80 ft x 46 ft)• Kong Ho’s students helped prep the

building, sketch out the mural, and paint

A Closer Look at the Mural

PA Outlined

Can You See It Now?

Rivers OutlinedDelaware

Susquehanna

Allegheny

Monongahela

Ohio

Can You See It Now?

Left

• The Allegheny River– 325 miles long– Right above the two center

geese is a lighter blue part that shows an outline of Pennsylvania’s coast

Left Center

• Traditional Viking Longship because Mt. Jewett was settled by Swedish immigrants

Right Center

• Kinzua Bridge– 301 feet high and

2,052 feet long– Built in 1882– A tornado in 2003

collapsed a portion

Right

• Nebo Church– Swedish Evangelical

Lutheran Church– Built in 1887

Bottom Left

• "Dalahästen” or Dala Horse is a Swedish symbol

Other Images

Route 6 sign because Rt. 6 runs through the town

Horse Plow

A man fishing which is a common past time in the area

Other Images

• Animals commonly found around Mt. Jewett

Other Images

• I am still unsure what the significance of these different flowers and birds are

Lessons You Could Teach

• History– Have students research historical landmarks like the Kinzua

bridge– Have students do research on Viking longboats

• Geography– Students can research and graph the location of the major rivers

in Pennsylvania

• Science– Do research on animals that are native to the different regions of

Pennsylvania

More Lessons

• Math– Have students do conversions to find the scale of the

images

• Language Arts– Have students create a story about the fisherman and

the man with the horse and plow

• Art– Have students create their own Viking ships or Dala

Horses

My Reflections

• I have lived near this mural since it’s creation in 2007 and I never noticed the outline of PA or the rivers before this project

• I was fascinated (an at times overwhelmed) with how much was actually going on in the mural

• When I found the different rivers in the mural I immediately called my sister to tell her because I was so excited by it

• The mural is also supposedly divided into different regions as well, though I was not able to locate them

My Reflections

• Green said: “At the very least, participatory involvement with the many forms of art can enable us to see more in our experience…” (pg 123)

• Booth says: “The work of art is the most effective practice for the noticing skills…” (pg 72)

• I feel that both of these quotes explain why I was not able to see more in-depth details about the mural. It wasn’t until I had all of the exposure to art in this class that I was able to notice these details.

Mind Map

Mt. JewettHeritageMural

by Kohn Ho

Noticings

Questions&

InquiriesReflection

Research

Big, bright colors, a lot going on,

historicalcontent, nature,paint chipping

-Who is the artist?-How long did this take?-Is there another title?-What materials used?-How big is it?-What are the birds and flowers?

-Painted by Kong Ho-Odd Fellows building-5 months to complete-3,332 square feet-Promote US Route 6as heritage corridor

-Overwhelmed- Fascinated- Green quote- Booth quote

References

• Green, M. (1995). Art and the Imagination. In releasing the imagination: Essays on education, the arts, and social change. Pp 123

• Booth, E. (1999). The Everyday Work of Art. Lincoln, NE: iUniverse.com, Inc.

• youtube