A Mural Of Many Names

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Jonah Gibson and Melanie Davis standing by the school mural

Isabella Garofani

Walking the halls of Muskego High shouts out our Warriors pride of integrity, humility, honesty… The creative minds of Jonah Gibson and Melanie Davis represent the Warriors slogan in the mural they painted. The mural is located in the school cafeteria where many students are passing before, during, and after school. Hence, the mural has become quite popular among the students. I got the privilege to ask Melanie and Jonah what exactly inspired them to create this beautiful work of art at Muskego High School.

The mural captures Muskego High School’s athletic, music, art, and other co-curricular departments that many students are involved in. The inspiration to create this mural came from Jonah to give more recognition to the art department. Jonah further elaborated that the mural represents the diversity of clubs and activities found at MHS, and to help everyone feel that they are part of something special. Jonah says that he needed a central focal point in the mural and decided to choose “the spear, which is part of our MHS school logo, and placed 4 neutrally toned hands around it to show the general interest groups of students who come from our school.”

Melanie and Jonah both came to the consensus that there were many memories linked to the mural that are entertaining to look back on. What many do not know is the hard work that went into creating this magnificent mural. Melanie says that “moving these boards in a classroom is tricky enough, let alone through the school building, into a Honda minivan and into a cluttered garage.” As one can see, the whole process of making this mural was not that simple. The boards evidently fell a lot and somehow one board was laying on a water bucket, which was used for cleaning art brushes! One interesting fact to know about Melanie and Jonah is that they were neighbors for six years and never really knew each other until this past summer.

As of now, both Melanie and Jonah are always creating different works of art. Currently a freshman at Savannah College of Art and Design (SCAD) in Georgia, Jonah plans to pursue a career related to animation. Melanie, currently a senior at Muskego High school, plans to also attend the Savannah College of Art and Design in Georgia to pursue a career related to illustration. One final note that these artists want to leave with is to “inspire other artists at our high school to follow their passion as well!”

Jonah Gibson and Melanie Davis standing by the school mural