Vermillion Community Mural Project

The first Vermillion community mural.

Painting the Town

The Vermillion Community Mural Project was a subsidiary of the the VCA developed by Amber Hansen, an assistant professor at University of South Dakota’s Department of Fine Arts. The VCMP sought to create public art spaces for community members to share their stories through visual language. Through participating in the creation of the murals, we hope that more people will see themselves as imaginers and creators, capable of creating the world they want to live in. In 2022, VCMP evolved into Mural On the Wall.

The first community mural, completed in 2017, is featured on the side of the Coyote Twin Theater in Vermillion’s Pocket Park. It drew inspiration from familiar Vermillion sights and community values, represented as movie posters in honor of its location.

Wanáȟča braids her hair and sweetgrass as the star spirits of ancestors dance across the sky, and the river bends the corner, all breathing life into the scene of Eúŋkičhetupi.

Project Complete

The VCMP’s second and most recent mural was completed in summer 2020 and dedicated in October 2021. This project was led, designed, and created by new leaders and indigenous artists Reyna Hernendaz, Inkpa Mani, and Elizabeth Skye.

Preparation for this project began in April 2019, with the location identified as the back side of the Coyote Twin Theater so as to be visible from City Hall. The artists then held public meetings, during which they invited members of the community to share their thoughts on what they would like to see represented in a mural through workshops that included storytelling, drawings, and poetry. From these conversations, the artists found that there is need to create space for women, specifically indigenous women. Their full mural design—a diptych that wraps the northeast corner of the building—pays tribute to the importance of women while telling the Sioux creation story.

Community members and lead muralist Reyna Hernandez (center) brainstorm at the first design session, hosted by the Native American Cultural Center.

Muralists Inka Manni, Elizabeth Skye, and Reyna Hernandez translate design session feedback into a line art rendering.

The lead artists mix paints to create and select colors for the mural.

Line art is projected onto the primed wall of the Coyote Twin at night for the artists to trace.

Members of the Vermillion community gather to pick up paint brushes and color in the lines. This community paint day was held in July 2019.

Vermillionaires make the stretch to reach higher parts of the design during the community paint day.

The beadwork design of this traditional garment is incorporated as a border along the bottom of the mural.

Many hands make light work. Progress after the community paint day.

The ascent begins. Artists use the lift provided by partner Midwest ReadyMix to reach the upper portions of the wall.

After weeks of work by the lead muralists and assistant artists during hot summer evenings, the mural is looking vibrant and ready for detailing.

Lead muralist Reyna Hernandez holds up the color study maquette for comparison to the mural.

This photograph of a Sioux woman nursing her children is found in the W. H. Over Museum’s archive. She inspired the central portrait of the mural.

Reyna Hernandez brings the mural’s central figure to life.

Elizabeth Skye leans in to her work as the sun sets.

Eúŋkičetupi may be complete but the project continues! In May 2020 work begins on the second part, titled Wanáȟča, which will wrap the corner of the building.

Coming [Back] to Life

The portion of the mural completed during summer 2019 is titled Eúŋkičhetupi, a Lakota word meaning “we are restored” or “we come back to life.” The theme of rebirth encompasses not only the Sioux creation story but also the anticipation of restoration after the flood waters, which were heavy on the minds of the Vermillion community in early 2019, recede. Scroll through the slideshow to watch Eúŋkičhetupi come to life and learn more about the imagery incorporated in the design.

Line art rendering of the full mural design. The righthand portion, titled Eúŋkičhetupi, was completed in summer 2019. The left side, Wanáȟča, wraps the northeast corner of the building and was completed summer 2020.

Planting Seeds for Wanáȟča

Preparation for Wanáȟča picked up in April 2020, despite the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic after meeting our $13,000 fundraising goal with support from the South Dakota Arts Council and ioby fundraising platform. Part two of the mural, titled Wanáȟča, the Lakota word for “flower that blooms,” fills a larger area than its counterpart. This mural serves as visual introduction to the story depicted in Eúŋkičhetupi, by portraying a Native woman “breathing life” into the rest of the scene. She is depicted braiding her hair, which flows into the Missouri River and the water that is a central theme in the first mural.

This side of the mural also relies heavily on the image of butterflies as metaphor to talk about the presence of indigenous cultures all across North America. The monarch butterfly’s migration requires four generations to complete that path and monarchs draw from inherited generational knowledge in order to complete that journey—similar to this project. As contemporary indigenous people, the artists understand and recognize the internal conflict that arises from walking in two worlds. One of their goals with the mural, similar to that of the butterfly, was to give future generations a space to learn from and witness the knowledge of those that have gone before them.

As symbols of renewal, both water and the butterfly make reference to the struggles of Native peoples, including addiction, sexual assault, and the terrifying number of missing and murdered indigenous women (Native American women face murder rates that are more than ten times the national average). In Wanáȟča the artists have decided to emphasize the unique and powerful story of survival and resilience, instead of focusing on the violence.

The completion of this mural represents another significant investment in and dedication to enlivening and enriching the Vermillion downtown experience.

Community art needs community hands. We are grateful for your support—whether financial, physical, or virtual. Together we can continue to inspire imagination and vibrant representation to our town.

Final Thanks

Throughout the painting process we were lucky to have supportive partners who helped fund the project and prepare the wall. They include our many friends and neighbors who attended the meetings and wielded paint brushes, the Bush Foundation’s Change Network, Vermillion Area Community Foundation, the USD’s Department of Fine Arts, and Marisa Cummings and USD’s Native American Cultural Center, Ace Hardware of Vermillion, Midwest Ready Mix & Equipment, Inc., Mart Brothers Construction, Inc., R-Pizza, ioby digital fundraising platform, the South Dakota Arts Council, and many individual local donors. Thank you.