St. Paul St. Park is home to the We the People mural by Dr. Bob Hieronimus. It is a redesign of his Bicentennial mural originally commissioned by the City of Baltimore and painted in 1974. The overall theme of this mural is “One People, One Planet”. The piece uses aspects of the divine feminine present in United States symbolism, plus Hieronimus’s trademark references to extraterrestrial life, astrology, and even the Yellow Submarine. The core message of the mural derives from Hieronimus’s doctoral research on indigenous influences on the structure of the United States government. Central to this message is Hieronimus’s certainty [LINK: One People One Planet] that the nation must tap into its female power and learn to lead with compassion instead of domination – a message frequently appearing in his artwork and the thesis of his 2016 book The Secret Life of Lady Liberty.
Origins of We the People
The original Bicentennial mural was one of ten contest winners for Baltimore’s Bicentennial Art Program in 1974. Bicentennial remained a landmark in St. Paul Street Park for nearly 40 years until 2013 when Hieronimus was asked to come out of mural retirement to help preserve his work.
The preservation process was made possible through funding from Zohara Meyerhoff Hieronimus, initiative from neighbors in the community, and support from Jubilee Baltimore, Midtown Development, and Guppy Management’s Alan and Mike Shecter.
To complete the task, Hieroinmus recruited a crew of dedicated art students and professionals from UMBC, MICA, and Johns Hopkins University and was able to both restore the original work, plus update and expand it to double the size of the original. The result is the fully refurbished, redesigned, and renamed We the People mural. Its vibrant color palette is hard to miss as residents and visitors alike pass the St. Paul and Lafayette intersection in Baltimore.
In the summer of 2014, the Charles North Community Association and Jubilee Baltimore organized a celebration for the recent changes to the park, recognizing the volunteers and funders, and honoring the artists with live music, and refreshments. Both Bob and Zoh Hieronimus delivered [LINK] moving speeches to commemorate the reopening of the mural.
Bob Hieronimus in 1974 in front of the original, much smaller, Bicentennial.
See We the People Today!
To seeWe the People in person, visit St Paul Street Park at 111 E. Lafayette Street at St. Paul Street. To read more details about the symbolism used and the artists that helped to restore the mural, read We the People A Mural is Reborn, Enlarged, and Renamed. [LINK]
Gallery
July 9th painting crew: Director of Artistic Operations Justin Williams, Billy Mitchell, Annie Rochelle, Ashley Pratt, Dr. Bob, Lauren DeMarsh, Jimin Choe, and Valerie Chavez.
Megan Jang paints the bundle of arrows, symbolizing the strength in unity in many indigenous cultures.
The figure of Aquarius emerges in the mural. The water bearer symbolizes diversity and analysis, and synthesis as opposed to selfishness.
Lady Freedom is the central goddess in this mural, representing the mural’s core message of waking up to the divine feminine powers within us all.
Lauren DeMarsh working on the Haudenosaunee Tree of Peace. It is a white pine tree with its roots representing the law of peace stretching to all corners of the earth. The branches symbolize shelter and security.
Lauren DeMarsh works on the Statue of Liberty figure. A detailed analysis of the symbolic importance of Lady Liberty can be found in the 2016 book The Secret Life of Lady Liberty.
Valerie Chavez working on the rainbows which stand for the uplifting energies pouring from Aquarius. Rainbows also symbolize the bridge of heaven. They are caused by the reflection of the Sun (the Self) in the water-drops (Truth) pouring forth from the cloud (buddhi) to the Earth (physical nature).
Annie Rochelle working on rainbows. A rainbow is created when white light passes through a prism and produces seven colors, a visual connection to E Pluribus Unum: “from one come many.”
Jimin Choe paints the ears of maize, featured on the lower part of the mural and is another homage to indigenous wisdom. Sustainable environmental practices of many indigenous nations honored the needs of 7 generations ahead, maintaining commerce without despoiling the land.
Zoe Daniel painting the George Washington Belt which was presented by George Washington to the Haudenosaunee to ratify an agreement of peace between the Haudenosaunee nation and the newly formed 13 colonies. Click here to read more about this historic treaty.
Mai Huong Huynh-Teage paints the Battle Monument. This monument is a democratic monument to all who died in the Battle of Baltimore during the War of 1812 regardless of rank. It is also likely the first Egyptian-inspired architecture in Baltimore with a base modeled on an Egyptian cenotaph, and the four corners decorated with griffins.
Dr. Bob Hieronimus paints symbols of unity in the Haudenosaunee flag, featured on the wampum belt.
Jubilee Baltimore’s Linda Harrington organized the party.
Dr. Bob Hieronimus with We the People posters and t-shirts, also available in the Store.
The re-opening party for St. Paul Street Park was attended by local politicians (Jack Young, Stokes, Vicki Almond among them) and many community members, artists from all the murals, a band, and pizza donated by former Baltimore staple Joe Squared.
