By Lexi Lin, Social Media Editor
The Conestoga hallways boast two new murals, with art ranging from planets and animals to chemistry and molecules. Students painted the murals at the end of last school year and over the summer in the upstairs and downstairs science hallways.
The upstairs mural is chemistry-themed, including images of model kits, the periodic table and Lewis structures. The downstairs mural has a strong emphasis on biology, with elements of science from Conestoga’s various electives such as astronomy.
“If you look closely, it goes from a small molecular kind of area to the big planets all the way down (the hall),” said senior Amanda Henry, who helped paint the downstairs mural. “It slowly goes up to more complex life forms.”
The planning process for the downstairs mural started in April, when art teacher Leanne Argonish gathered a group of interested students from the National Art Honors Society. With the help of science teacher Amy Hawkins, the students finalized the design in June, and over the summer, available painters came in to work on the artwork.
“Eventually, we got to sketching up these rough designs and the final designs. Everyone kind of had a certain part to do,” said senior and painter Karen Hang. “For example, I drew (the) DNA digitally and everyone else did a different part, like some people (drew) a bee and a deer.”
For the upstairs mural, art teacher Amy Cruz recruited seniors to paint the mural as part of their senior internships. This caught the attention of Samantha Meaney, a 2024 Conestoga alumna. She asked her friend Kaan Karakas, also a 2024 Conestoga alumnus, if he was interested, and the pair painted the mural in May 2024. The painters and teachers hope the murals will positively impact the students and staff who see it.
“I just want (the murals) to brighten up the environment,” Henry said. “It brings vibrancy and helps build school spirit.”
Lexi Lin can be reached at [email protected].
