Public Art

Gourmandizing NEON

745 Granby Street, NORFOLK, VA 23510

Matthew McGuinness and The Governor’s School for the Arts Students

2022

The Governor’s School for the Arts hosted a series of workshops with London-based artist Matthew McGuinness for six weeks in the spring of 2022 working with visual arts students to research the theme, “A History of Lunchtime in Norfolk”.

In these workshops, Matthew and the Gourmandizing team encouraged and directed the students towards desk and field research that culminated in a range of historical content, contemporary stories, sentimental quips and anecdotes pertaining to lunch. Matthew helped the students make sense of the story and uncover and synthesize their findings into artwork. In the fall of 2022, these individual pieces were woven together into a mural in the NEON District (painted by Matthew and the students) and a zine that illustrates the student body’s findings, process and final makings. Click here to read more about Gourmandizing projects.

Located on the side of a longstanding family-owned business in the NEON, the Virginia Furniture Company at 745 Granby Street, the mural is aesthetically pleasing and informative, with images of food and ingredients from local cuisine. The mural is presented by The Monument Companies and Legend Property Group with support from PRA Group and The Governor’s School for the Arts Foundation.