Creating a mural in community

On a sunny Saturday in October, Minneapolis artist Natchez Beaulieu and her team are installing the final panels of a new campus mural outside the DeWitt Wallace Library, part of the college’s ongoing work to honor Minnesota’s Indigenous land, water, and communities. With Mac Fest celebrations happening all over campus, the walkway is bustling. Early in the afternoon, Beaulieu pauses to wash glue off her hands and lead a Mac Fest program about the project in a full Harmon Room. An hour later, she’s back to work—with frequent breaks to talk with passersby who stop to ask questions, watch the process, and admire the pillars.

Finishing the mural amid these community connections is fitting for Beaulieu, who deliberately centered community engagement throughout the entire process. As soon as she was selected by a Mac working group led by Native and Indigenous staff and faculty, Beaulieu, an Anishinaabekwe from the White Earth Nation, prioritized creating the mural in collaboration with the Mac community. This past winter, she hosted discussions with Native alumni, students, faculty, and staff, as well as the campus community. With that input, Beaulieu and co-designer Graci Horne (Sisseton Wahpeton Oyate) shaped the project’s focus on the Four Directions and Dakota land. Later in the spring and summer, Beaulieu hosted painting sessions with students, faculty, staff, and alumni, including the Class of 1965, which provided generous support for the project. 

Beaulieu’s mural work uses an indirect fabrication method with polytab, which becomes a canvas that’s paintable, portable, and designed to withstand Minnesota winters. This fall, her team adhered the panels to the twelve pillars under the Link in the heart of campus—an intentionally chosen location, designed to spur learning, reflection, and meaningful action.

“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.”

See more of Natchez Beaulieu’s work on Facebook and Instagram.