I had a very great experience visiting the Runquist Murals in Knight Library. I have not been to many art museums, galleries, etc in my life time. Personally, I have never had that much interest in viewing art. However, I found these murals to be very intriguing and it changed my perspective on viewing art. I realized that viewing art is a very enjoyable experience. I also found it to be humbling, seeing all of these beautiful works of art that people have created.

In this week’s reading, Doss wrote, “Grounded in conversation, dialogue, and often debate, public art can serve as a symbol of civic examination, prompting further debates about community needs, hopes, and histories” (Page 10). I think the Runquist Murals do just this. They are public works of art and they are very complex and detailed. They provoked many different thoughts and ideas in my mind. I think that these murals do serve as a “symbol of civic examination”. I believe that they prompt people to look deeper at our community as well as the history of how arts and sciences came to be.

Doss also wrote a lot about how public art can be very controversial. I think that these two murals are controversial as well. People may perceive them differently or may have different views on them. They may mean different things to a person depending on a person’s background. People may have debates and discussions about these murals and what they mean. I believe that because these murals are so complex and have a lot going on, it creates the opportunity for controversy and debate just like Doss talked about.

In addition to this, Doss says, “A widespread interest in genius loci – spirit of place – has helped generate site-specific works of art: public art projects that engage specific factors such as location, audience, and history” (Page 5). Here Doss is explaining that this idea of “spirit of place” has helped to make public works of art more reflective of a community’s history. I think this is present in the Runquist Murals. For example, in the Development of the Arts mural, there is a panel in which there is a painting of sheet music with the title “Mighty Oregon”. As many of us know, “Mighty Oregon” is the University of Oregon’s historical fight song. The fact that this appears on the mural shows that it has spirit of place. The painting is being specific to our community and reflecting our history.

There is also the idea of relevance in art. I believe that the Runquist Murals are very relevant in our society. I think they are relevant especially in Eugene because a lot of people in Eugene enjoy art as well as the history of this city. First off, the Runquist Murals are very beautiful. They also incorporate a tree. The tree is the main structure of both paintings. Eugene is a very environmentally-friendly place, and it is very green here. The University of Oregon has many trees on campus. I believe that because of this, the murals are very relevant and reflect this area well.

At first, I found these murals to be very overwhelming. There is so much going on in both of these murals, and it is hard to interpret and understand them in the beginning. However, after looking at them for a while, I found beauty in this complexity. It is intriguing to look at all of these different aspects that are represented in each panel of these murals. There is so much to take in and explore. The murals do a great job of combining complexity and beauty.