Willie McIntyre, ‘22 Artist: following up with a 2022 Franklin ‘Big Will’ scholarship recipient

Submitted by Barbara Mahoney, ’67;  Deborah Burton, ’67; Tamiko Miyano, ’88; and, Connie Olson, ‘88 

Our first encounter with Willie McIntrye was during our first career and scholarship fair, Rising Tide, in February 2022. A shy young man with his head bowed approached our table. He was wearing overalls and covered with paint. Asked about the paint, he explained he was “free-handing” a mural in the Kingmakers room. Intrigued, we traveled upstairs and were rewarded with our first view of Willie’s incredible art. We all wanted to get to know this quiet, talented young man better. Not long after, Willie and his story and art would be shared with FAAF board and committee members.

Mural for Stanford Elementary in Wallingford.

Since graduating, he has dedicated his energy to making art. With each new mural commission, he is putting his stamp on our community. He donated his services to our Coming Home event by designing the original artwork used on the flyers, T-shirts, and magnets. Willie had an opportunity last fall to join a group that traveled to San Francisco to attend the Kehinde Wiley exhibit called ‘An Archaeology of Silence’ at the de Young Museum. Moving through the dark rooms and witnessing the colorful and powerful work was life changing for him. When the unexpected opportunity to meet a famous street muralist in the Mission District in San Francisco arose, Willie did not hesitate to make the connection.

Willie was born and raised in Seattle, the second oldest in a family of five kids. His family showed him what could be done through their love of crafts and skills, gave him empathy for others, and encouraged his art. He credits his dad for his artistic talents and his mom for his cooking chops. 

He started his art at the age of four, drawing things he liked. Family friends asked for drawings, and he continued to develop his style. Mr. Mohamed at Asa Mercer Middle School was the first art teacher to encourage him and teach him techniques. At Franklin, Alex Ng and John Dunkerley also contributed to his artistic development. Willie has done some three-dimensional work in school, which he finds has challenges, but his view is that “if you have the vision, you can make it work.” 

Though he can and does do smaller format work, Willie really enjoys larger format, public-facing mural work: “the bigger the greater.” The process of revisioning and transforming a blank wall would be daunting to most. Willie’s ideas for his work come from his vision “that sparks quick fires” in his head and from the inspiration of collaborating with others. He describes the first step as a discussion with the sponsor who gives parameters and ideas. He then takes their ideas and puts them together in a detailed drawing while communicating back-and-forth with the client. Willie’s empathy contributes insight into what people want and need. 

Sarah Jones, principal of John Stanford International School, saw this firsthand. “After chatting for fifteen to twenty minutes about our school vision for our mural, Willie was able to take that vision and come up with an incredible design draft within a few days. It was exactly what we were envisioning. We love our mural and what it adds to our building. He was so responsible and showed much pride in the finished work.”  

He reports the most satisfying parts of the work: the exciting and motivating collaborative communication about the concept; getting into the flow of the painting along with problem-solving during the process; and, the feeling of pride and happiness as he does the finishing touches. He loves to visit his works to see the public’s reaction.

Willie wants to “inspire kids—give them the feeling that they can do what they want to do and show them how to put the work in to accomplish that—to make room for people that want to do something or be a part of something to make a change.”

Art is life to Willie. It is quite moving to ponder Willie’s perseverance and grace in the face of many challenges. Still soft-spoken, today’s Willie stands taller and looks you in the eye. Willie’s conversations now are filled with vision, ambition, and goals. Gone is the invisible and bullied child. Willie is a role model, an esteemed alumnus, and an inspiration for us all. He envisions creating a better world through community empowerment. Willie is an artist.