"Longevity and loyalty": Artists honor George Floyd with mural in Minneapolis

Artists create 20-foot-wide mural to commemorate George Floyd

Steps from the very spot George Floyd took his last breath in Minneapolis, a mural has become a place to gather and to mourn. Last week, Xena Goldman, Cadex Herrera, Greta McLain and a small group of artists completed the portrait in less than a day.

"Why did you feel so strongly about creating this mural?" CBS News asked.

"I was incredibly angry that I was watching another man die at the hands of law enforcement. We've seen this so many times. We needed to take action," Herrera said.

"And particularly now, we feel like the entire country and world is screaming for justice, and this is our way of screaming as well," Goldman said of the mural, which stands 20-feet wide and 6 1/2 feet high. 

Malaysia Hammond, 19, places flowers at a memorial mural for George Floyd at the corner of Chicago Avenue and 38th Street, Sunday, May 31, 2020, in Minneapolis.  John Minchillo / AP

A sunflower surrounds Floyd's face. Look closely and you'll see the names of others, like Tamir Rice, Freddie Gray and Philando Castile.

"Why did you want to create the sunflower around George Floyd?" CBS News asked.

"The sunflower represents longevity and loyalty. The names inside the flower represent the seeds that were never able to grow into fully developed flowers," Herrera said.

You'll find murals for George Floyd as far as Los Angeles, England and even Syria, but this one in Minneapolis has become a beacon for healing.

"I wanted to create something that would help me heal personally and not realizing that through this, it would help the community heal as well," Herrera said.

Click here to visit a GoFundMe page set up by Goldman to support public arts and arts initiatives nationwide.

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