UCSB Students Paint New Mural in Ellison Hall

Eleven students completed a collaborative art project this summer on the UC Santa Barbara campus.

Updated on Oct. 20, 2026 in Painting

UCSB Students Paint New Mural in Ellison Hall

Live Poll

Should university students have a greater role in designing and decorating their own campus facilities?

Eleven students from the UC Santa Barbara Department of Art finished a new mural in Ellison Hall this summer. The project replaced a previous installation that had been on the wall since 1975.

Why it matters

The Department of Political Science initiated the project to introduce fresh creative concepts to the shared office and academic space. This interdepartmental collaboration aims to foster connections between the arts and social sciences.

The completed mural spans 25 feet wide by 9.5 feet tall and took six weeks to finish. Students used professional-grade acrylic paints, often requiring five or more colors per mixture for opacity.

The players

Department of Political Science

This academic department invited art students to design and install a new mural in their office building.

Department of Art

This department collaborated with the political science faculty to create the student-led mural project.

The details

Participants researched political science themes and drafted concept statements before submitting designs to a faculty committee for approval. They also documented their specific paint formulas to ensure future maintenance of the artwork remains possible.

1975: Original mural installed on the Ellison Hall wall.
2016: Date of a previous interdepartmental art project at UCSB.
Summer 2026: Eleven students completed the new Lane Room mural.

Culture Shift

This project continues the institutional trend of utilizing student artists to refresh campus spaces through interdepartmental partnerships. It follows a collaborative pattern set by the 2016 UCSB interdepartmental art collaboration.

University visitors and students can now view the updated mural within Ellison Hall. The project sets a precedent for potential future installations as academic advisors consider similar collaborations for other campus departments.

The takeaway

Documenting artistic techniques and materials ensures that site-specific installations can be preserved by future generations. Students looking to lead similar projects should begin by identifying faculty partners and submitting formal design proposals.