Helen Burr Mural @ 114 Washington St

This public mural in downtown Lynn is the work of painter Helen Burr and was organized by Beyond Walls. Burr moves between traditional studio painting, using oil on canvas or linen with palette knife and brush as well as watercolor or pencil on paper, and urban mural work, where she uses brush, roller and masonry paint to create larger-than-life images. Her work explores how painting can sensitively address current issues and events.

Burr’s interest in painting and photography took off after a 2007 visit to the Hayward Gallery’s exhibition The Painting of Modern Life. After earning a first-class Fine Art degree from Cardiff School of Art, she co-ran The Abacus, a volunteer arts space, studio and gallery in central Cardiff, and spent two years running the Empty Walls street art festival. Since 2016 she has focused on her own practice, showing work in Berlin, São Paulo and London.

What to Know

• Burr has painted the interior walls of the Wales Millennium Centre as well as walls on the streets of Brazil.
• The mural is listed by the Downtown Lynn Cultural District among the area’s public artworks.
• A photo gallery of the mural by Creative Collective accompanies the listing.