“All real works of art look as if they were done in joy.” 

― Robert Henri, American painter

Thanks to teen artists Maritza Garcia (L) and Libby Heide (R), best friends from North Boone High School, our new Harvard branch at 100 Admiral Drive, recently received joyous works of art painted on its front windows to celebrate its grand opening event.

Spanning across all the front windows, the scene consists of three separate murals of people in their work environments. One comprises a silhouette of a fair-toned woman standing in a field holding wheat in her arms on a sunny day. Another is of a darker-toned business man against a cityscape background. The other scene features a warm-toned woman in a hard hat holding a clipboard with raindrops falling around her. 

More window panes include various depictions of nature. One features the earth with handprints around the planet with the phrase, “The earth is what we all have in common,” painted in bright blue lettering. Two of the other panes consist of similar interpretations of bright green trees with many leaves – all beautiful and unique.   

Also deemed a multicultural exhibit, the windows include the same phrase from above colorfully painted in Spanish to tie the whole scene together.

Maritza recalls how drawing has always been in her blood and she also is inspired by other young artists who can be found sharing their artwork on social media. “When I was little, I picked up a pencil and began drawing,” she says. “Painting to me is a way of expressing myself and something I’ve always enjoyed.”

Sustainable Staffing owner Mary McBride says the world needs to encourage more artists like Maritza and Libby. “Nurturing artistic talent in the youth is more necessary than ever,” she says. “Art education is often devalued as a legitimate pathway to a prosperous career. I absolutely love having Maritza and Libby display their vision on the storefront of our Harvard branch office.”

And the artists, who are leaning toward careers in art, are glad to showcase their talents publicly and enhance the world around them.

“We’re honored that Mary thought our artwork was good enough to display and we’re very proud of our paintings in English and Spanish for bilingual clients to see.” says Maritza. “We definitely appreciate this opportunity. This is our first big project we have done and we are so proud to have our work seen by so many people.”

Thank you Maritza and Libby for your hard work and dedication in this beautiful project. We appreciate your creativity and bringing your talents to brighten our workplace! Keep up with the great work!