Mural Making Process
Presentation from artist Natchez Beaulieu about the mural’s creation process and installation.
Indigenous Land Campus Mural
Over the past years, a Macalester working group led by Native and Indigenous staff and faculty began developing a campus mural project, as one piece of how Macalester honors the narratives and experiences of our Indigenous communities. This is ongoing work to think critically about how we care for—and educate about—the Dakota land we’re on.
In 2025, we partnered with Minneapolis artist Natchez Beaulieu, Waabigwanikwe (Flower Woman), an Anishinaabekwe from the White Earth Nation and co-designer Hapistinna Graci Horne, who was born and raised in Mnisota whose Dakota and Lakota bands are Sisseton Wahpeton, Hunkpapa, and Wahpekute, to create an acrylic mural covering the columns in the Link between the library and Old Main.
Natchez’s vision for the project began with a focus on the Four Directions and the Dakota land. Equally important to her is connecting with the Mac community to shape this project together, including through artist dialogue events and chances to paint the mural together. The mural was completed during the fall, with a dedication ceremony on Monday, October 13th, 2025, to honor Indigenous Peoples’ Day.
Learn more about the mural
Creating a mural in community
“Finishing up this weekend with people around—it gives me goosebumps,” Beaulieu said at Mac Fest. “It’s just what I wanted this to be.”