NEPAL MURAL EXCHANGE

A project involving the creation of two murals representing Rotary's 7 Areas of Focus; one at Mangal School, Kirtipur, Nepal and the other in Rosebud in Australia. The Nepali mural was created in the local mithali art style, while the Australian one will be painted in a western style. These will represent the ongoing connection between Australia and Nepal and our unity and collaboration in commitment to service above self for a better world - as well as the strong friendship between our nations.

Mural at Mangal School

This is one of the first projects our club undertook during our Nepal service trip at the end of 2024.

After a wonderful welcome ceremony, involving inspiring speeches, traditional dances performed by the students, and the establishment of signs celebrating Rotary, Rotaract, and Interact's involvement over the years in supporting the school - framed by the hand prints of students, Rotaractors, Rotarians, teachers, and us! This was also the day we first met members of our twin club, RAC Kathmandu Mid-Town - an amazing group of people who would quickly become good friends as they worked alongside us tirelessly throughout the mural creation process. (to learn more about our twinship with Kathmandu Mid-Town, click here!)

The wall was a long strip inside the school grounds, going up an incline and overlooking the school sports courts. Happily, it can also be seen from the street! Its length made it perfect for dividing into seven separate but connected designs for each of the Areas of Focus.

Guided by artist, seasoned Nepal traveler and Rosebud-Rye Rotarian, Sandra Fiedeldy, we gathered our supplies and put our heads together to deal with the gift that keeps on giving - unexpected logistical challenges! An elevated fence was blocking the wall, putting to rest our original idea of projecting and tracing the designs before we painted them. For the first time of many, our resilience was tested as we began to demonstrate greater adaptability. We instead went for a 'grid method' - where we separated each Area of Focus' design into smaller squares that were more manageable to draw to-scale with chalk, with a to-scale-grid first drawn on the wall.

Once the grid-making and chalk-tracing was completed, we could move on to the painting! This involved colour-mixing to get the exact requisite shade, a steep learning curve as our members learnt the art of mural painting starting with zero experience, and countless litres of paint!

Another challenge, though very much a welcome one, was the school-children's boundless enthusiasm in wanting to paint! Everytime the school bell would ring signifying lunchtime, hundreds of eager footsteps were heard as the kids ran to where we were working, all asking for a job. It was definitely chaotic, but so nice to have the children involved and excited about what was in fact not our mural - but theirs. Their input can be seen especially clearly in the colourful handprints that make up the wings of the woman representing peace on the first section of the wall - a beautiful representation of working together for a kinder world.

This mural project was also fundamental in the building of relationships between our club and that of Kathmandu Mid-Town - as mentioned above and on our Twinship page. Collaborating on this project everyday, with the Mid-Towners making clear efforts to be present, despite juggling other Rotaract, work, study, and personal commitments; we were truly grateful. Seeing their smiling faces each day lit up the rest of our group and the mural would not be what it is today without their help! Notably, they were the primary input for the design of the Economic Development section and their input overall should not be understated!

After about 10 days of evaluating the mural site, painting, re-evaluating, repainting and refining - it was time for the official unveiling and goodbye ceremony. And what a beautiful moment to be standing united as a group, including our new friends at RAC Kathmandu Mid-Town, with the school officials and children beaming as they admired the finished work they had helped to create. We were presented with a beautiful Token of Love from Mangal School, symbolising the deep friendship between Australia and Nepal and the personal ones between those present on the occasion, while also personifying the value and beauty of international collaboration. To encourage the already developing plans of students and staff to create more murals around the school, we bought more art supplies to donate and gave them our spare paint. Additionally, we donated educational resources to further support the school, including over 100 educational posters!

It was truly an honour to have a lasting impact on Mangal School students for years to come as they gaze at the beautiful mural and hopefully gain a greater appreciation for the importance of each of Rotary's 7 Areas of Focus and are inspired to pursue a life of service above self to create positive change for all. These sentiments are now forever expressed in the plaque pictured below - beside the mural and the hand prints of the students, staff, Interactors, Rotaractors, and Rotarians.