A Beautiful Place II is a large scale mural in the back of Friends With You’s exhibition, The Dance. During this writing prompt, you will see how it aligns with the artists’ message of friendship, happiness, hope, and nostalgia.

Take several moments to carefully examine the following detail images of this piece before answering the questions below.

First, write down everything that you notice. Even if you don’t recognize a character, still try to describe them to the best of your abilities.

• What drew your eyes first in each image? Why do you think this may be?

• Where do these characters come from? Would you typically see them all in the same place?

• Why might the artists have chosen to place them all in the same world? What could this tell us about the environment they are all in?

• What seems to be the general vibe from all of these characters?

• How are they interacting with each other? Do they seem to be getting along?

• With so many different characters, that have so many different traits and personalities, how is it that they all seem to be ‘coexisting’?

• What can we learn from that in our own lives?

Finally, considering the information we just gathered, I encourage you to come up with a story about this world and its occupants. Using Friends With You’s message of friendship and happiness, craft a tale about the origin of this universe and how all of these characters came to be here.