KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Painted plywood near Troost Ave. and 31st St. not only exhibits art, but offers a look into what’s next for the neighborhood.
“It’s not about bringing strength into the community, the strength is already here. It just needs to be revealed,” said Father Turbo Qualls of St. Mary’s of Egypt Orthodox Church.
He is one of several artists participating in the mural project with Troost Market Collective, a nonprofit. The mission of the organization is to bring beneficial spaces for expression and innovation to the Troost community.
Katie Mabry van Dieren, co-founder and Director of Arts and Programming for Troost Market Collective, was approached by her partner with the idea of turning buildings owned by Clemons Real Estate into a nonprofit.
“I didn't want to bring my crafts fair to Troost. Instead, I wanted to bring something from the community since these buildings have been empty for so long,” she said.
The buildings along the 3100 block of Troost are being renovated. While that process takes place, the boards along the building are used as a picture of what’s to come.
“I asked the owners if we could have the community mural them so that the community here would know that something is coming that will involve them and it’s not just going to be someone coming to tear these down and build a highrise,” said Mabry van Dieren.
The artists, professional and amateur, were chosen based off their drawing of what the Troost community and Kansas City means to them.
Father Quall’s mural, “Troost Transformed” depicts the “expectation of potential.”
“Really, the idea behind the mural was my hope and my expectation of what the coming development could be. Not necessarily what it’s going to be, but what it could be. So I painted it as an encouragement and also as a beacon of the direction that the development should go.”
Once the building's renovations are completed, the pieces will either hang inside the collective or be auctioned off with the funds benefiting the nonprofit.
“My hope is that the community be involved and it will grow and then everyone, east and west, can participate in that strength that’s already here,” Father Qualls said.
Getting Involved
Anyone can be involved with Troost Market Collective.
