Alice Hamilton, a grade 11 student at Gravenhurst High School (GHS), knew of a perfect way to brighten up the halls of her school.
“I’ve always thought that our school could use more colour and diversity,” said Hamilton. “Instead of looking down on our black and whiteness, I chose to imagine all of us as one, we are all humans, capable of different kinds of love. This mural symbolizes peace and togetherness from a queer perspective.”
Hamilton says the idea stemmed from a meeting with the school’s Gender and Sexuality Alliance Club. “Our walls are honestly too blank,” she adds. So, the idea was thought up to add some much-need colour. Hamilton says Aimée Bulloch, Visual Arts teacher at GHS, encourages students to think outside the box. “The biggest inspiration was definitely bringing more love and acceptance into our school,” she continues.
With it being near the front entrance of the school, Hamilton hopes it serves as a thought provoker for those who pass by. “We’re all one,” she says. “We’re all one school.”
Bulloch says together they decided to use grey-scale people to represent equality and oneness. “The rippling flags in and around the figures highlight some of the many different gender and sexuality flags from the two-spirit, lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, intersex, asexual plus communities with the space and potential to add more so that they can proudly cascade down the hallway as this mural grows in the future to include more flags in the years to come,” she continues.
Hamilton says the reaction has been positive. “It’s been really helpful to me to boost my confidence a little more,” she adds. Hamilton says she’s received a lot of compliments from other students and teachers.
Bulloch says Hamilton is one of her strongest art students. “I think the world of her,” she adds.
“Every time I pass it in the hall I give myself a pat on the back,” says Hamilton.