Flyboys

Themes: African-American, icons

This mural depicts six to seven boys, varying in sizes, who are all wearing a green helmet and yellow rimmed goggles. The foreground consists of the boys submerged in bright blue, almost teal, water where most of them seem to be drowning as the level of the water appears to rise. The middleground contains a green mountain range and the background shows a relatively clear sky, which is similar in color to the water, with a few stratus clouds spread throughout. The main focus is the tallest of the boys, located in the middle of the mural, who is hunched over and has a white halo hovering above his head.

This mural was created by Hebru Brantley in 2013, it is located along 16th street as a part of the Art in Public Places Initiative which added many new street art murals to the two-mile railroad embankment that runs along 16th street from Halsted Street West to Western Avenue. Hebru Brantley, an African American artist, is popular for his work revolving around his conceptualized iconic characters which are utilized to address complex ideas through the accessibility of his color palettes and pop-art motifs. The boys in this mural are an example of Brantley’s popular FLYBOY icon which is inspired by the Tuskegee Airmen, a group of primarily African American pilots and airmen who fought in World War II and made up the first African American flying group. Brantley opened a fine art exhibition in Pilsen during October 2019 to showcase a narrative of his FLYBOY and LIL MAMA icons and the FLYBOY icons can be seen throughout Pilsen in several murals. The mural is rather large as it fills up the entirety of its allotted space along the railroad embankment, proving to be visible from across the street.

While Hebru Brantley’s work does not always carry a message apart from self expression, the location and religious imagery from the halo more than likely means this mural is meant to be interpreted for meaning. The focus of the mural and largest FLYBOY seems to be more important than the other FLYBOYs as his massive size makes it so that he is not drowning and suffering the same fate as the others. This ability to not drown in the water is being given to him by the halo which has caused him to grow large quickly as is observed by his hunched and puzzled appearance. The halo, symbolizing religion, shows that the FLYBOY has been granted this gift due to his proximity to God. The mural is attempting to tell the viewer that through God one can avoid drowning in outside influences that so many who are underprivileged (and potentially discriminated against such as African Americans like Hebru Brantley and the Tuskegee Airmen) struggle to avoid due to the situations surrounding their existence.

This description was written by Garrett Kenny (Accounting and Collaborative Innovation), Notre Dame Class of 2023