Saugus High School Art Club paints mural chronicling music

SAUGUS – Students in the Saugus High School Art Club have been spending their Tuesday afternoons on 6-foot ladders and scaffolding, painting the hallway outside the library. But it?s no side job for these young artists – they?re painting a mural chronicling music from the 1950s to today.?It?s Saugus through the years through music,” said art teacher Doreen Mastandrea. “Today is our extended day. We usually do it for an hour, but today we?re doing two hours. I bribed them with pizza.”Mastandrea said students have been working on the mural for the last three years, after her first art class came up with the idea. But things haven?t exactly gone according to schedule.?They brainstormed and asked if they can do a mural in the hallway and I said, ?There?s no way this is going to be done in time,?” said Mastandrea. “But they convinced me, so I said, ?Okay.?”But it?s been a long process since, Mastandrea said.The mural starts off in the 1950s, with Elvis Presley and Johnny Cash singing in an old style diner, followed by the 1960s panel featuring a giant silhouette of the Beatles? classic Abbey Road cover along with a peace sign and the old Woodstock logo.Junior Chris Masih had just finished painting a red ?57 Chevy for the 1950s section.?It took around two or three meetings to finish,” said Masih, who admitted he didn?t listen to much music from the 1950s. “The actual sketch was done by some other student. Last year I finished the Woodstock poster.”The 1970s panel features the Rolling Stones tongue logo surrounded by AC/DC, Queen and Who records, which then blends into the 1980s, where a giant image of Madonna is surrounded by the Berlin Wall and figures by the ?80s artist Keith Haring.The ?70s panel was still partially blank Tuesday, but Mastandrea suddenly came up with an idea she said she may wind up using.?One teacher wants it to be a Grateful Dead skull,” said Mastandrea. “But I like the Clash. That?ll be good. Punk was important.”The 1990s mural is only partially done and features Nirvana and Red Hot Chili Peppers logos. It?s this portion of the mural Mastandrea said has taken the longest to finish.?We just whitewashed over all the ?90s,” Mastandrea said. “It?s been done twice. The students didn?t finish it the first year, and when I had the second year they decided they didn?t like the design. So they repainted it and promised me they would finish it, which is a common theme. Then the new group didn?t like that either. The ?90s have given us a lot of trouble.”Junior Nicole McMaster was working on the Nirvana logo Tuesday and said she remembers students working on the mural back when she was a freshman.?The ?90s wall is supposed to look like cork board,” McMaster said.The final section is the only finished portion of the mural, and was designed and painted by former student Luke Rossi. The 2000s panel shows a huge iPad with a list of songs by artists like Jay-Z, Blink 182 and Green Day.Senior Erin Bennett was working on the shading on Johnny Cash?s face. She said she always tries to find time in her busy schedule to help out.?I?m kind of come-and-go with art club because I do drama,” Bennett said. “I do the little things, like shading his face. Whenever I see them on their ladders and I realize I?m not doing anything, I just jump on.”Freshman Abbey Ross has been helping with some touch-up work and painted the Coca Cola logo in the 1950s panel. For Ross, the mural will help add a little flare to an otherwise dreary hallway.?I like it a lot. It brightens up the atmosphere. We?re just building off of what we already have,” she said.Matt Tempesta can be reached at [email protected].