The True Grit Mural Project –Sponsored by Molina Healthcare sprouted from an idea during a warehouse tour. Jason Jurado –the curator of the project- was touring Farm Share headquarters in Homestead, FL and noticed that there was a lack of color on the walls. Jurado had the idea of having murals bring color and beauty to the warehouse walls. Jurado wanted to have murals installed that would serve 3 main functions: To bring awareness to the issue of food insecurity, to pay homage to the Florida farmers and to provide those who labor at the warehouse a new bright and artistic environment to work in.
The project consists of 5 murals. Each mural has a meaning and each mural has details that tell a story or give a message regarding food insecurity and the fight versus hunger with strong undertones of agricultural life as an homage to Florida farmers.
The five murals are:
“Farm Share Breaks into Color” by the famous graffiti writer ESKAE. ESKAE was sought after due to his specialization in fonts. The artist has the ability to drop a very modern font on his murals while still having the ability to execute old school fonts like the “Wild Style” font he used for the mural on the Farm Share stairs. He used this font after being inspired by the commercial spot that played during the Olympic Games this past summer. Farm Share's commercial “Bringing Colors” displays a dark world that is transformed into a world full of color and life by the donation box at a Farm Share food distribution.
CLICK HERE for more information and images from "Farm Share Breaks Into Color".
The second mural is “Farm Share Breaks Through” by Murals Miami. This mural focused on the iconic Farm Share red truck. Our red trucks are beacons of hope and life to those who are going hungry. In order to capture the concept of the hope that the Farm Share trucks brings during “Tough times” Murals Miami wanted to capture a moment in action as a Farm Share truck bursts through a brick wall. The truck shows its strength and resilience that the Farm Share team had during the pandemic by not skipping a beat and delivering more food to Floridians than ever before. Murals Miami did a fantastic job of capturing the action and feeling of awe that is brought when one of the Farm Share trucks arrives at a location where there is need. The message also has to do with the emotion that a Farm Share truck still brings with it even today when we have 3.9 million Floridians under food insecurity.
CLICK HERE for more information and images from "Farm Share Breaks Through".
“Working Heroes” by Murals Miami is the project's main display of respect and honor to the Florida farmers and to all those who work in order to feed the millions that are under food insecurity in Florida. The mural was created by Murals Miami and developed by Farm Share’s CEO Mr. Stephen Shelley. Both wanted to come to an image that would display the heroic and steadfast attitude taken by all those who did what they could to feed the hungry. This includes farmers, food pantry coordinators, community center employees, the truck drivers and those who work the fields in order to harvest the food we need to survive. The mural depicts two hands that are cultivating a sprout. The sprout is being held by both hands. The hands have two different skin tones in order to emphasize the fact that during the toughest of times, Floridians see past race, religion, political views and backgrounds and we always help each other out.
CLICK HERE for more information and images from "Working Heroes".
The fourth mural is "Founder Flyby" by Murals Miami. The farm scene is the continuance of this project's focus on honoring the Florida farmers. The mural has a typical farm scene done in spray paint with modern street art methodology. The artists have added elements of modern art technique to a very typical scene in order to bring out the color and detail of the piece. The final touch was a biplane being flown by the Farm Share founder, Ms. Patricia Robbins, whom the warehouse is named after. This detail is meant to be a personal touch on this public piece that was hand brushed by Victor "The Viper" Giraldo, one of the artists from Murals Miami. This beautiful detail will be known to those who know the history of the organization and will be used as an opportunity to talk to visitors about our founder and our roots in Homestead.
CLICK HERE for more information and images from "Founder Flyby".
The final mural is a satirical image named the “War Versus Hunger”. The artists wanted to work on a piece that symbolized the struggle that team Farm Share faces every day when we get up with the ambitious mission to fight hunger in Florida. The design depicts “Hangry Stomach” an angry and hateful beast that is actually a hungry stomach. The “Hangry Stomach” is trying to hold the state of Florida hostage under the foothold of food insecurity but Farm Share and our army of donors and volunteers get up every day to fight hunger.
CLICK HERE for more information and images from "War Versus Hunger".
The project will give the Florida farmer the respect they should have for their donations and the project will go beyond beautifying the Farm Share warehouse. Molina Healthcare is a true community partner and they have proven to be genuine about their willingness to help us fight hunger in any way possible. Molina Healthcare had the foresight to see what this project would do and it is worth mentioning that they allowed the artists to have full artistic control of the project in order to allow them to have control of the narrative.
“We’re ecstatic at how spectacularly these talented artists were able to make our warehouse space come alive and visually represent the very serious issue of food insecurity that Florida faces,” said Stephen Shelley, CEO of Farm Share. “We at Farm Share combat this profound challenge every day, and we’re thankful to everyone who helped make this dream become a reality.” The five murals were designed and painted by Murals Miami and famous graffiti writer ESKAE, with Jurado curating the project. Murals Miami is a team of artists consisting of Julian “The Audetor” Gonzalez , “BRUTE” and Victor "The Viper" Giraldo.
“Molina shares Farm Share’s mission to address food insecurity and distribute fresh and nutritious food to Floridians in need,” said Mike Jones, plan president of Molina Healthcare of Florida. “This mural is a great representation of our continuing eight-year commitment to Farm Share.”
We are grateful for the partnership between Farm Share and Molina Healthcare. Our partnership has been going on for years and they have always stepped up in order to help us fight hunger in Florida. Molina Healthcare has sponsored multiple food distributions as well as sponsored part of our truck fleet which helps us pick up donations and send food to those in need all over the state of Florida.
Finally, Farm Share would like to thank the artists. Jason Jurado’s vision and the execution by Murals Miami and ESKAE who made this project special. The five murals were designed and painted by Murals Miami and famous graffiti writer ESKAE, with Jurado curating the project. The artists put thought and they dedicated their time to making sure each mural had meaning and a genuine message for those who see them.