Wings I

2010 1,000 sq ft of murals

Site: Community Christ Church

Artists: 22 youth

Partners: Allied Arts of Greater Chattanooga, Community Foundation of Greater Chattanooga, Community Christ Church, Glass Farm Neighborhood Association and the City of Chattanooga’s Department of Education, Arts & Culture

Description: The Wings series was inspired by a church sermon based on the story of Elisha, a prophet who woke up to find his city surrounded by an enemy army. Elisha told his servant not to be afraid, and the servant looked out the window to see “the hills full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha” commanded by angels ready to protect the city from harm.

Twenty-two adolescents from Community Christ Church designed and painted Wings I depicting angels protecting East Chattanoogans. Embracing the idea of trusting what you cannot see, the children created templates of angels and then placed them randomly on top of patterns they had created, resulting in angels that appeared transparent flying through air. The resulting angels were then painted on a wall on the church property. Collectively, the angels symbolized protection of their neighborhood from violent crime and represented the cultivation of faith.  

Wings I was funded in part by the Community Foundation of Greater Chattanooga and ArtsBuild.