Artist Mehdi Ghadyanloo has completed Spaces of Hope, the latest giant mural on the Rose Kennedy Greenway. The work is the fifth in an annual series of contemporary murals on the massive 70′ x 76′ tunnel vent building wall facing Dewey Square.
“I want people to think of ‘hope’ when they view the mural,” said the 35-year old artist when we spoke with him one day while he was painting. The scene shows crowds of people in a dark space with small red balloons. The tightly gathered group are climbing stairs to an opening where one gigantic balloon is shown escaping from the roof.
While still contemporary, the latest edition is significantly more complex and graphical than the one it replaces, A Translation From One Language to Another, a simple textual mural by Lawrence Weiner. Ghadyanloo said he was inspired to come to Boston after seeing the Os Gemeos mural from four years ago. However, his work generally avoids political statements and instead aims to evoke feelings of happiness and imagination.
This is the first American mural by Mehdi Ghadyanloo who hails from Tehran, Iran and has had displays of his surrealist scenes in London and other international cities. He viewed the Boston opportunity as perfect for “building connections of the dreams we all share.”
The Rose Kennedy Greenway Conservancy commissioned the mural, the first that it has done on its own. Previous murals were commissioned with a museum or arts partner.
View past murals on the Greenway:
Shinique Smith’s “Seven Moon Junction” Mural
Artist Matthew Richie Greenway Mural
