The Malden High School art department recently took its students on a field trip to the bike path across from the school where they painted a mural titled “Bike to the Sea.” The mural was in honor of the Malden Bike Club that holds over 100 years of history.
As part of a competition, MHS, alongside Malden Catholic High School and Mystic Valley Regional Charter School, painted murals by the bike path. Over 60 students were present to help out. Some of the helpers were not part of the art classes at MHS, which amazed art teacher Mary Ann Seager.
The idea behind the mural was to display the history of the city as well as to connect it to biking through Malden to Revere Beach. Students included many historical figures such as Governor Alvan T. Fuller in the mural. Fuller grew up and attended school in Malden, and later became the most successful auto dealer in the country. He also sold bikes and raced in many competitions as a member of the Malden team.
Katherine “Kittie” Knox is also included in the mural. Born to a free African-American father and white mother in 1874, she was the first African-American woman to be allowed to compete in biking competitions in Boston. Next to Kittie in the mural are Principal Dana Brown with his wife Marie Brown.
The painting process took the art department several days to finish, including weekends, Professional Development Day and Veteran’s day. Students took the days off of school to paint, which helped to quicken the process in creating the mural. Seager states that she is "always amazed by the students at Malden High School." Her favorite part of the whole experience was “coming down the bike path [and seeing] five or six kids [she did not] really know, [but who wanted to help with the mural].”
Because of the mural, the city and its history are connected to a club that recognizes biking as a sport and a hobby. In the quick sketches of the mural, many important figures that have impacted Malden are portrayed in a variety of positive ways by educating others and even helping out with the community. Biking has been an important part of Malden for decades, and this mural symbolizes the rich history that Malden has to offer.
