Artist honors Pulse victims after Orlando mural was mistakenly painted over
NAMEPLATES HONORING ALL OF THE INNOCENT LIVES THAT WERE LOST ON JUNE 12TH OF 2016. AND OVER THE PAST TEN YEARS, PEOPLE FROM ALL ACROSS CENTRAL FLORIDA AND THE COUNTRY FOR THAT MATTER, REALLY HAVE ALWAYS FOUND DIFFERENT WAYS TO HONOR THE 49 AND TO KEEP THEIR MEMORY IN FOCUS FOR YEARS TO COME. WE WANT TO BRING IN MY COLLEAGUE JESSE PAGAN WITH ONE EXAMPLE THAT HITS REALLY CLOSE TO HOME. JESSE. YEAH, THAT’S RIGHT. MICHELLE. SO THIS MURAL RIGHT HERE, A LOT OF PEOPLE KNOW IT. WE TALKED WITH THE ARTIST WHO SPARKED REALLY AN ENTIRE CAMPAIGN OF ART IN HONOR OF THE 49 AND KEEPS IT GOING TO THIS DAY. THIS ISN’T ABOUT ME. THIS IS ABOUT THE COMMUNITY. THIS WALL ON THE CORNER OF MILLS AVENUE AND LAKE HIGHLAND DRIVE IN ORLANDO IS SPECIAL TO ARTIST ANDREW SPEER. THE ONLY THING REALLY DIFFERENT ABOUT IT IS THAT IT’S PROBABLY FOUR TIMES THE SIZE OF THE LAST ONE. THAT LAST ONE WAS THE ORIGINAL MURAL HONORING THE 49 PEOPLE WHO DIED IN THE PULSE NIGHTCLUB MASS SHOOTING IN 2016. CITY COMMISSIONER PATTY SHEEHAN COMMISSIONED ANDREW TO PAINT THE MURAL DAYS AFTER THE MASSACRE ON A BUILDING AT THE CORNER OF MILLS AND COLONIAL DRIVE. IT WAS THE FIRST ART PIECE IN THE CITY’S EVENTUAL YOU MATTER CAMPAIGN. ALONG MILLS. IT STOOD THERE UNTIL 2023, WHEN THE NEW OWNER OF THE BUILDING MISTAKENLY PAINTED OVER IT. BUT IT WASN’T GONE FOR LONG. IN APRIL OF LAST YEAR, ANDREW FINISHED REPAINTING IT. HERE. IT’S BIGGER, IT’S BRIGHTER, BUT IT’S KEPT THE SAME. 49 COLORFUL DOVES AND SPIRIT. YOU GOT TO KEEP THE CONSCIOUSNESS OF IT ALIVE. I THINK THAT’S IMPORTANT, ESPECIALLY FOR YOUNGER PEOPLE. IN ALL THE YEARS THAT HAVE PASSED, ANDREW SAYS A LOT HAS CHANGED IN ORLANDO, BUT HE BELIEVES THE COMMUNITY IS STILL ONE CENTERED ON UNITY. THE MOST IMPORTANT PART IS GETTING THE MESSAGE OUT THAT, YOU KNOW, WE’RE GOING TO HAVE TO LEARN TO LIVE WITH EACH OTHER. ALONGSIDE THE MURAL, REMEMBERING THE EVENTS OF JUNE 12TH, 2016 FOR ANOTHER TEN YEARS, IF NOT MORE, I REMEMBER WHEN THEY ACCIDENTALLY PAINTED THAT IT WAS QUITE THE SHOCK TO A LOT OF PEOPLE. IT WAS ACCIDENTAL, THE OWNER OF THE NEW BUILDING SAID, YOU KNOW, WE HAD TO CLEAN UP SOME GRAFFITI ON THE SIDE. WE WERE, YOU KNOW, TOLD TO DO THAT, BUT WE DIDN’T REALIZE WHAT WE WERE PAINTING OVER. BUT AS YOU SAW THERE, OKAY, GET OVER THE, YOU KNOW, THE INITIAL MOMENT OF SHOCK, BUT THEY MOVED QUICKLY TO FIND A NEW WALL FOR IT. NOW ON MILLS ON THE BUILDING WHERE FRAMEWORK COFFEE, FOR EXAMPLE, IS GUEST HOUSE. THAT PLAZA RIGHT THERE. AND NOW IT LIVES THERE, SUPER BRIGHT AND BIGGER. IT BECAME AN ICONIC PART OF ORLANDO VERY QUICKLY.
Artist honors Pulse victims after Orlando mural was mistakenly painted over
Updated: 10:33 PM EDT Jun 12, 2026
The outer wall of Framework Coffee, on the corner of Mills Avenue and Lake Highland Drive in Orlando, is special for artist Andrew Spear. “The only thing really that’s different about it is that it’s probably four times the size of the last one,” he said walking past it. That “last one” was the original mural honoring the 49 people killed in the Pulse nightclub mass shooting in 2016. District 2 city commissioner Patty Sheehan commissioned Andrew to paint the mural days after the massacre, on a building at the corner of Mills and Colonial Drive. It was the first art piece in the city’s eventual “You Matter” campaign and stood until 2023, when the new owner of the building mistakenly painted over it. It wasn’t gone for long. In April of last year, Andrew finished repainting it at the new location. It’s bigger and brighter, but it’s kept the same 49 colorful doves and spirit. “You gotta keep the consciousness of it alive,” Spear said. “I think that’s important, especially for younger people.” In the decade that’s passed, Spear feels a lot has changed in The City Beautiful, but he believes the community in Orlando is still one centered on unity. “The most important part is getting the message out,” he said. “We’re gonna have to learn to live with each other.”
ORLANDO, Fla. —
The outer wall of Framework Coffee, on the corner of Mills Avenue and Lake Highland Drive in Orlando, is special for artist Andrew Spear.
“The only thing really that’s different about it is that it’s probably four times the size of the last one,” he said walking past it.
That “last one” was the original mural honoring the 49 people killed in the Pulse nightclub mass shooting in 2016.
District 2 city commissioner Patty Sheehan commissioned Andrew to paint the mural days after the massacre, on a building at the corner of Mills and Colonial Drive. It was the first art piece in the city’s eventual “You Matter” campaign and stood until 2023, when the new owner of the building mistakenly painted over it.
It wasn’t gone for long. In April of last year, Andrew finished repainting it at the new location. It’s bigger and brighter, but it’s kept the same 49 colorful doves and spirit.
“You gotta keep the consciousness of it alive,” Spear said. “I think that’s important, especially for younger people.”
In the decade that’s passed, Spear feels a lot has changed in The City Beautiful, but he believes the community in Orlando is still one centered on unity.
“The most important part is getting the message out,” he said. “We’re gonna have to learn to live with each other.”