Carbondale Public Library celebrates a diversity of stories with new mural funded by Healing Illinois

Carbondale Public Library used its Healing Illinois grant to upgrade its historic Brush Building with a literature-themed mural. They polled community members to choose which books should be featured and commissioned local artists Maddie Deiters and Jamarr T McZeke to paint the mural. 

REDECORATING THE CARBONDALE PUBLIC LIBRARY TO CELEBRATE ALL

The Carbondale Public Library had started planning a mural before applying for the Healing Illinois grant. However, due to the cost of large-scale murals, the process had stalled before additional funds made the full project possible. 

There is a historic portion of the library called the Brush Building, named after Carbondale founder Daniel Brush, which has been preserved. The mural acts as a decoration to make the building feel more cohesive with the modern part of the library built in the 1980s. 

Library director Jennifer Robertson noticed that the racial healing and sustainability focus of the Healing Illinois grant could add a new interesting layer to the mural, which inspired them to apply. 

“I thought that could be a really fun way to tie in a project that we were already interested in doing and make it even more meaningful and good for the Carbondale community, as a very diverse community,” she shared. 

THE DIVERSITY OF CARBONDALE, ILLINOIS

For its smaller size of about 25,000 people, Carbondale is a diverse city. Approximately 58% of residents identify as White, 28% identify as Black or African American, and 7% identify as Asian. According to Census.gov, about 10% of the population was born outside the United States. 

Carbondale is also a university town, which brings in an even more diverse group of visitors. While Southern Illinois University (SIU) students have a library on campus, there are times when there is crossover with the Carbondale Public Library. 

“Yesterday, we had a group of ESL students come,” Jennifer shared. “I'd say there was maybe 15 or 20 for a summer class that they were doing through SIU… They're doing volunteering in the community, learning about the United States and the culture through going to these different organizations and doing these days of service… They were helping us inspect eclipse glasses, but a lot of them ended up getting library cards after they were done.” 

The Carbondale Public Library is not just a book repository but also a dynamic community hub. Artists, musicians, and writers frequently participate in their creative programming and clubs. Carbondale Public Library has also offered a social work program since 2015, and a full-time social worker since 2022, which draws more residents in for those services.  

As such, it felt fitting for the new mural to welcome all types of visitors to the Carbondale Public Library and celebrate the city’s full diversity. 

A CITY-WIDE EFFORT TO PICK FEATURED BOOKS

Jennifer shares that she wanted this mural to be a little more imaginative and uplifting of the local culture than other book murals she has seen before. 

“Some of the bookshelf murals that I've seen, they're really beautiful, but they have a lot of the same books. And so it feels kind of safe and just not as representative of all of the amazing authors and books that are out there. We thought it could be a way to show support for members of our community.” 

To ensure that the community had a chance to weigh in on the contents of the mural, the Carbondale Public Library opened an online survey for recommendations, which was promoted on local news station WSIL-TV. A few frequently requested books came in through the survey, as well as some broader categories, such as children’s books, local history books, or books from Illinois authors.  

After reviewing all the entries, a smaller group pared down the list of books, and the mural design was finalized by the Board of Trustees and the Friends of CPL. Some of the books featured include Beloved by Toni Morrison, Wonder by R.J. Palacio, Underground Railroad by Colson Whitehead, Cien Años de Soledad by Gabriel García Márquez, and The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot. 

YOUNG ARTISTS MADDIE AND JAMARR COLLABORATE ON MURAL

Artist Maddie Dieters, who also goes by ThreeLine Art, was selected to paint the new mural based on her previous work. She has already painted several large murals throughout Southern Illinois celebrating architect Buckminster Fuller, military veterans and outdoor wildlife. Because she is still a teenager, her mother often supervises and assists with her mural projects. 

Jamarr T. McZeke joined Maddie in filling out the finer details of the mural and assisted with the painting process. Given the size of the mural and the length of the work – about a month from beginning to end – Jamarr’s support and attention to detail were crucial in the project being a success. It was also a chance for him to work on a larger-scale project as an up-and-coming muralist. 

Maddie and Jamarr’s collaboration as two young, local artists added another layer of collaboration to this community-based endeavor. Both also had a chance to complete the survey with their book recommendations. 

The library held the unveiling of the final mural on July 10, 2024. It has been very well received, Jennifer says. “Even people that didn't fill out the survey or weren't sure about what they wanted to have on the mural have been excited about it. So we've gotten a lot of positive feedback.” 

LEARN MORE ABOUT CARBONDALE PUBLIC LIBRARY, THE MURAL PROJECT AND HEALING ILLINOIS

Those interested in learning more about Carbondale Public Library and the artists involved can visit the following resources: 

• Carbondale Public Library website 

• History of the Brush Building 

• WSIL News Story: Carbondale Public Library working on creating a mural 

• WSIL TV: Carbondale library polling residents for mural details 

• Jamarr T McZeke Instagram 

• Jamarr T McZeke Facebook page 

• ThreeLine Art Instagram 

• ThreeLine Art Facebook page 

The Carbondale Public Library is one of 184 grantees who received Healing Illinois funds for 2023-2024. You can view more sub-grantee stories on the Healing Illinois website and Healing Illinois Instagram page, as well as view past and upcoming Healing Illinois events.