A rainbow has returned to the Five Points in the form of a new 1,700-square-foot mural by Jacksonville artist Shaun Thurston.

“Constellations of Us” was officially unveiled to the community on Thursday, Sept. 3, in a ceremony attended by District 7 City Council Member Jimmy Peluso, Riverside Avondale Preservation Executive Director Shannon Blankinship, and other community leaders and stakeholders.

The vibrant mural fronts Lomax Street and spans the length of a privately owned building in the heart of the Five Points neighborhood. Throughout the mural, which flows through the full spectrum of the rainbow, silhouettes of actual neighbors and community members are positioned in various poses and appear to glow with radiant light.

Just steps away from this mural is a crosswalk at the Park and Lomax streets intersection. Last year, that crosswalk, once rainbow-colored, was painted over by the Florida Department of Transportation. The idea for this mural was a direct response to that.

“That was pretty much the basis of this,” Thurston said. “If you’re going to cover up rainbows that make people feel seen, I’ll just give you a bigger rainbow.”

Historically, Riverside and Five Points have served as safe spaces for the LGBTQ+ community. Richard Ceriello, founder and executive director of the AIDS Memorial Project of Northeast Florida, said the mural affirms Five Points’ inclusive and diverse community.

“All roads lead to Five Points, and that includes all types of people from all strata, from all religions, all ethnicities,” Ceriello said. “Seeing this come to fruition just reaffirms everything I’ve always believed about the diversity of this neighborhood, and how diversity and inclusion are essential building blocks to any healthy city, and this is a beautiful representation of a healthy city and a healthy community.”

“Constellations of Us” was made possible through private funding, with contributions from The Robert B. Ragland Foundation, AIDS Memorial Project of Northeast Florida, Preston Haskell, Justin Stowell and Travis Joyal, Clark LaBlond and Ben Montgomery, and Riverside Avondale Preservation.

According to a RAP press release, donations for this project exceeded its budgetary goal, and the overage will go into a reserve fund for the mural’s maintenance and care.