The new dragon mural on the right wall of the Parking Lot E entrance to building 1 is nearing completion, says art gallery director Paul Bridenbaugh.
The mural depicts a multicolored dragon. The mural has been in production since December 2009.
“The idea itself actually came from a dream,” said Bridenbaugh. He claims that after the dream, he decided to research dragons.
Bridenbaugh began working on the project when Skyline’s president Victoria Morrow requested him to paint a mural on an empty wall of building 1’s south side entrance. She herself was suggested this by the district’s Construction Planning Department.
It was funded with capital construction money from the bond passed by the voters in 2005
The mural depicts an abstracted form of a Vietnamese mythical dragon, painted on a series of 20 vertical concrete sections on the wall. Each section has its own unique designs and color pallet, but the form of the dragon is consistent between them.
Dragons are a common theme in many Asian cultures, because they are thought to bring good fortune and blessings. Dragons are commonly painted on the right side of an entrance, as it is considered to give good luck to those that pass by.
The majority of the mural is complete; with all that is left to be done is a few finishing touches on the body and the dragon’s eyes. According to Bridenbaugh, it’s customary in Asian cultures to paint the eyes last when painting a dragon.
A poem by Song Dynasty Master Xuedou Zhongxian is painted to the left of the mural, above the entrance of building 1.
Bridenbaugh invited students from his painting class and from the art gallery to help him paint the mural.
“It’s fun to paint with the columns,” said Lone Wang, a full time student here at Skyline who is working at the gallery as part of a work-study arrangement. Wang said that he hadn’t really had any experience painting something on this scale, so it was a new experience for him to work on the mural.
“Overall I think it’s amazing,” said Will Ton, an art gallery student. Ton said he thinks the designs are really exotic and cool.
