Living Entrepreneurship Blog / The Arts

BOW Sustainability Ceramic Mural Project

Susanna Kroll: This semester I have been fortunate enough to be a part of a collaborative sustainability bas-relief ceramic mural project led by Stephanie Osser (Babson’s Ceramics Studio Manager) between Babson and Wellesley College.  Each school created a 4’x4’ clay mural to creatively promote its sustainability efforts.

Included in my design for Babson’s mural are Mandell Family Hall (Babson’s most sustainable building), an energy efficient water heater, a gardener (Babson has a community garden and a large diversity of trees), a Big Belly Solar Energy Compactor (invented by Babson and Olin students), a biker, and a person with an idea, represented by compact fluorescent light bulbs.  After all, without ideas, sustainability efforts cannot continually innovate and succeed.

It took around two months to form our respective murals out of the clay.  Even though this process was long, it was also extremely rewarding.  Eventually, we cut up the tiles and fired them in the kiln.

The last step was to paint the mural using velvet under glazes.  With each brush stroke the images came alive with color.

The tiles have now all been re-fired and are cooling – So I haven’t been able to see the finished tiles yet!  I am so excited to see how they turn out, and I want to thank everyone that has been involved in this semester-long process.  The opening will be Friday, April 27 from 4:30-6:00 in Trim/Sorenson Visual Arts Gallery.

Susanna Kroll, Class of 2014