A Garden of Sweetness
Artist: Yuke Li
Material: Acrylic
This project is one of the asphalt murals created on 31st Avenue Open Street as part of the NYC Department of Small Business Services (SBS) Mural Program.
Concept: I use color blocks of varying scales to reflect Astoria’s mix of historic brick buildings and newer apartments and storefronts, while brush motifs reference the mural’s theme, “We’re Making a Mural, Y’all!”
To honor Astoria’s immigrant history and cultural diversity, I incorporated symbolic elements such as an olive branch (Greek heritage), a monarch butterfly (Latin American communities), Middle Eastern geometric patterns, and silhouettes of figs and pigeons inspired by local street life. Together, these elements form a patchwork-like composition that reflects how Astoria weaves multiple cultures and histories into a vibrant, unified neighborhood.
