By THT Arts Desk
“If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together.”
African proverb
From The Harlem Times: Kyle Holbrook has painted peace murals in all 50 states, but he will tell you the paint is the smallest part of the work. The founder of the MLK Mural Project (the letters stand for Moving Lives of Kids) spent the first week of November in New York City proving the proverb above, one brushstroke from many hands at a time.
On November 6, students unveiled an Inclusive Mural Project at the Queens Innovation Center in Woodside, a campus shared by Gotham Tech High School, Motion Picture Technical High School, Northwell School of Health Sciences and P993Q, a District 75 special education program. Students from P993Q led the creative process. The next day, Holbrook led My Path Forward at the New York City Inclusion Summit at John Jay College, where some 1,200 students from all five boroughs were expected to add their messages and drawings to a single symbolic tree. That finished tree will be displayed at the city Department of Education’s main office downtown.
The Harlem Times asked Holbrook about the work, and about his history uptown. His answers follow in his own words.
The Harlem Times: What did the Queens Innovation Center collaboration mean to you?
Kyle Holbrook: What matters most to me is that students from P993Q had a central leadership role in creating something for their entire school community. Their ideas helped shape the mural alongside contributions from Gotham Tech, Motion Picture Technical and Northwell School of Health Sciences.
Working on one wall gives students and educators a shared purpose. Everyone contributes to something larger than what any one person could create alone. The building gains a lasting expression of the people inside it, and students can look at that wall and recognize their own contribution. That sense of ownership is central to my work. Inclusion becomes something people practice together and can see every day.
The Harlem Times: Tell us about your background and what “MLK” means in your work.
Kyle Holbrook: I am a public artist and the founder of the MLK Mural Project, Moving Lives of Kids. For more than 25 years, I have brought young people and communities together through public art. This year, I completed my goal of creating peace murals in all 50 states.
My commitment to this work is personal. Losing friends and loved ones to gun violence shaped my understanding of how urgently young people need opportunities, encouragement and places where they feel valued. Art gave me a way to respond and to help create those opportunities for others.
Moving Lives of Kids describes the purpose of the work. The painting is part of it, but the relationships, mentorship and possibilities that grow through the process are just as important.
For me, Dr. King’s legacy asks an artist to take responsibility for how we treat people and what we make possible together. It asks us to recognize each person’s dignity and put that belief into action. I want young people to experience their ability to contribute, lead and make a positive difference in their communities.
The Harlem Times: What did you hope students would take away from My Path Forward?
Kyle Holbrook: My hope was for every young person participating to leave knowing, “My voice belongs here. My future matters. I have something to contribute.”
The tree offered a way for students and families to express their hopes and see them become part of a shared artwork. Each contribution had its own meaning while helping the whole piece grow.
For a young person who is rarely invited to create in public, that invitation matters. I want the experience to build confidence that extends beyond the activity itself, into school, family life and the choices they make about their future. I was grateful to participate with the families on Saturday and bring this idea to life together.
The Harlem Times: Have you worked uptown before, and what would a new mural with Harlem’s young people look like?
Kyle Holbrook: Yes. I have worked with the Police Athletic League in Harlem on two separate community mural events in different years. These were major community celebrations with strong turnouts, bringing young people, families, police officers and civic leaders together to create art.
Participants and supporters across those events included former Mayor David Dinkins, then Mayor Bill de Blasio, John Catsimatidis and then Police Commissioner James P. O’Neill. The holiday celebration included a toy giveaway, and the mural gave everyone another way to participate together. Children and officers worked on the same artwork alongside community leaders.
That shared experience is at the heart of my work. Each person contributes something, and together we create a lasting reminder of what cooperation can accomplish.
A new mural with Harlem’s young people would begin with their voices. Harlem has an extraordinary history of Black art, culture and leadership. I would want the young people to explore that legacy while sharing their own experiences and hopes for the neighborhood. The finished mural should honor Harlem’s history and give its next generation a visible place in that continuing story.
The Harlem Times: What comes next, and how can people take part?
Kyle Holbrook: Completing peace murals in all 50 states was a major milestone, and I am continuing to build opportunities for young people to participate in public art. Upcoming work includes community mural projects in Pittsburgh, Miami and Steubenville, with education, mentorship and community participation remaining central to the process.
Schools, families and community organizations in Harlem can reach me directly at khdesign87@yahoo.com or through mlkmural.com. I welcome conversations about bringing a collaborative mural project to the neighborhood. The starting point is a community that wants to work together and give its young people a meaningful voice.
From The Harlem Times: Schools, churches and block associations that want a wall of their own can start the conversation at mlkmural.com. Share this story and tag us @HarlemTimesNews on X and @theharlemtimes on Instagram.