CHICAGO (WBBM NEWSRADIO) -- A group of residents in the Calumet Heights/Avalon Park neighborhood are committed to beautifying the area and making it a destination for tourists and locals.
This afternoon they took a step toward that goal and unveiled new murals on a vacant lot.
"When we started painting the mural, it was just a regular lot and people didn't think much of it," said one of the artists Kayla Mahaffey. "They just used it as a pathway. It was kind of dirty. It was unkept."
She said her mural's superheroes are saving the neighborhood with their beauty, vibrant colors and public message that the area needs more everyday heroes. Hopefully, her art can be inspirational for community members to speak up and enact change, she said.
"A lot of people are afraid to speak out about a lot of things," she said. "There might be a lot of crime — a lot of things that go unheard."
The second mural was created by the 37-year-old artist Max Sansing, who grew up near the spot where his mural is on 79th. Sansing is an artist with works in other parts of Chicago and other cities.
"People don't necessarily hop in their cars and go over here to do things, so I want it to be one of those places where you can do that," Sansing said. "This is the street where I kind of got my hard knocks on, you know?"
His mural shows a young woman looking off into the distance wearing a Bulls jersey, hidden under layers of rainbow colors. She is holding a long stick, which has keys dangling from above.
Both murals are on East 79th Street near Constance Avenue.