By Emily Christensen

A pair of street artists from New York have an ambitious goal: painting a mural in every state in the U.S. And they just crossed Kansas off their list.

"The Great Spirit," located at 2020 E. Douglas Ave. just east of Interstate 135, is the 20th mural in the project by artists Menace and Resa.

Dominique Williams of Dahmoe Haus Creative Agency helped facilitate the mural. She represents Woke3, a Kansas-City-based artist who contributed elements to the mural, including the "tree man."

"He told me that they were going to pass through Wichita and they needed a space," Williams said. She suggested a Douglas Avenue location given that it's a "hot spot for graffiti art." The artists received permission to paint from the owner of the building, Williams said. They spent about a week and a half on the project.

Menace and Resa wanted to use the mural to honor Wichita's indigenous history. At an event at the Wichita Art Museum, Williams introduced them to artist Carlotta Evans, who shared local history and images of members of the Wichita tribe. She also and told the visiting artists about Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women (MMIW), a movement that advocates for the end of violence against Native women. Menace and Resa incorporated the MMIW symbol of a red handprint into the mural.

"I sent the picture of the mural to a Native group chat, and everyone really loved it," Evans said. "(MMIW) is rarely spoken about. We're still trying to get our missing people recognized."

For their part, Menace and Resa were pleasantly surprised by their time in Wichita.

"We came to Kansas as ignorant New Yorkers, expecting to find cows and farms and such,” they posted on Instagram. “We instead found a small city rich with history and its own unique culture. Wichita surprised the f— out of us with a vibrant and active graffiti and art community and a deep history tied to the Native Americans that call the areas around Wichita home.” 

— Emily Christensen, managing editor

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