photo by: Cynthia Hernandez/Journal-World

The Lawrence Community Nursery School, 645 Alabama St., is seen in the background on Sunday, Sept. 7, 2025, as painters work on a street-level mural designed by local artist Dave Loewenstein with inspiration from the students.

Volunteers gathered at the intersection of Alabama and Seventh streets over the weekend for a “Street Painting Party” that brought the vision of local artist Dave Loewenstein and neighbors and students of the Lawrence Community Nursery School to life in a street-level mural depicting box turtles — the state reptile of Kansas – and designs from the community.

“(The students) are so excited they got to be a part of it,” Shannon Carlson, the secretary for the Lawrence Community Nursery School, said in an earlier conversation with the Lawrence Journal-World. “(When they) walk by it every day, it will be so fun to see their excitement.”

The event was spread over two days and included a food truck and, on Sunday, music from Zydeco Tougeau. The mural was expected to be complete Sunday afternoon.

photo by: Cynthia Hernandez/Journal-World

Hot pink paint is reflected back at a woman during a Street Painting Party at Seventh and Alabama streets on Saturday, Sept. 6, 2025.

photo by: Cynthia Hernandez/Journal-World

Volunteers work on a yellow section of a street-level mural at Seventh and Alabama streets on Saturday, Sept. 6, 2025.

photo by: Cynthia Hernandez/Journal-World

Children work on their section of a street-level mural at the intersection of Seventh and Alabama streets on Saturday, Sept. 6, 2025.

photo by: Cynthia Hernandez/Journal-World

The outside edges of an intersection-wide street mural begin to take shape at the intersection of Seventh and Alabama streets on Saturday, Sept. 6, 2025.

photo by: Cynthia Hernandez/Journal-World

Local artist Dave Loewenstein chats with volunteer painters as they work on the street-level mural he designed with input from local nursery school students at the intersection of Seventh and Alabama streets on Saturday, Sept. 6, 2025.

Local artist Dave Loewenstein chalks out a portion of a mural being painted at the intersection of Seventh and Alabama streets on Sunday, Sept. 7, 2025.

photo by: Cynthia Hernandez/Journal-World

Sam Zipper rolls paint for a street mural designed by local artist Dave Loewenstein with input from local nursery school students on Sunday, Sept. 7, 2025.

photo by: Cynthia Hernandez/Journal-World

A painter chats with a photographer at the Street Painting Party at Seventh and Alabama streets on Sunday, September 7, 2025.

photo by: Cynthia Hernandez/Journal-World

Work continues on the street-level mural at Seventh and Alabama streets on Sunday, Sept. 7, 2025.

photo by: Cynthia Hernandez/Journal-World

Zydeco Tougeau performs Sunday, Sept. 7, 2025, during the Street Painting Party outside the Lawrence Community Nursery School, 645 Alabama St.

photo by: Cynthia Hernandez/Journal-World

Painters are surrounded by a sea of color as they work on a box turtle for a street-level mural at the intersection of Alabama and Seventh streets on Sunday, Sept. 7, 2025.

photo by: Cynthia Hernandez/Journal-World

Work is almost complete Sunday evening on a mural at the intersection of Seventh and Alabama streets on Sept. 7, 2025.