Title:  Sunrise of Enlightenment


Site:  Nobel Elementary School
4127 W. Hirsch Street, Chicago

Artists: Nina Smoot Cain and Mirtes Zwierzynski


Assistant: Julia Sowles and Chris Silva


Community Participants: 13 youths in 1987, and 10 youths in 1995


Sponsors:  Chicago Public Art Group, Gallery 37, and Youth Service Project


Year:  1987, 1995


Scale:  270 square feet


Materials: Broken ceramic tile


Information:  The first community mosaic to adorn a Chicago public school, this beautifully designed cracked-ceramic-tile piece around Nobel Elementary’s main entrance celebrates both the learning experience and the diversity of the Humboldt Park community. Using vivid primary colors, the original mosaic framed the doorway with icons to represent mathematics, language, nature, and culture. In 1995, the mosaic was extended with new side panels designed by Cain and Zwierzynski. A new team of Youth Service Project teens worked with Zwierzynski to remake a damaged portion of the original mosaic and fabricated the new designs.