Winning Mural Illustrates Strong Stance of Women

The 8-by-12-foot mural shows the silhouette of a woman on the Coronado Bridge. In her outstretched arms she holds a sphere with the design of a dove.

To artist Cindy Paul, the woman in “Reach for Peace” is making a personal statement about the powerful stance of woman. “She is making progress . . . the progress made in the last decade put her on the bridge,” Paul said.

Paul unveiled her mural at the Community Concourse on Friday, the last full day of the two-week conference in Nairobi, Kenya, that concluded the United Nations Decade on Women.

Paul won a countywide contest organized by several women’s groups to commemorate the end of the United Nations Decade on Women.

Paul said she entered with the idea of winning. “I tried to think what would please so many judges that I arrived at a terrific artist’s block.”

When she finally decided to stop thinking about winning and start thinking about how she feels about the women’s movement, Paul came up with the mural’s design in three hours, she said.

Judges picked the mural based on four criteria, Paul said. The mural had to express the image of women in the world and San Diego, and the theme of the Nairobi conference: development, equality and peace. The fourth criterion was artistic merit, she said.

“I haven’t been involved in any political groups, but I’ve watched the women’s movement closely and I feel I owe it something,” Paul said.

The contest idea originated with Nica Bell, a volunteer producer at KPBS-FM. Bell wanted to link San Diego women with the U.N. Decade on Women’s conference, said Jennifer Spencer, who coordinated the contest.

Spencer said Paul’s work accomplished that goal. “She definitely did a beautiful job.”