The Gratitude Graffiti Project: From Maplewood to the World

What are you thankful for?

In 2012, The Gratitude Graffiti Project began asking this question in Maplewood, New Jersey. Since then, it has spread around the world in neighborhoods as far as Vancouver and Hong Kong. All it requires is a set of markers—from there, the community does the rest. Anyone can become an artist and any surface can be a canvas, with everything from windowfronts, sidewalks, driveways, or posters fair game for creation. 

During the month of November, Candice Davenport, Maplewood’s Health Officer, and Andrea Teutli, its Manager for the Division of Arts and Culture, hope to make the practice of gratitude an ingrained part of people’s lives. We sat down with them to discuss how, by inviting reflection on the everyday, gratitude and its positive health outcomes can bring communities together. 

What do you do for the town of Maplewood, and how does this project fit into that?

Teutli: In my department, we aim to partner with the community and other municipal divisions to increase awareness and provide broader programming. Maplewood has a vibrant community that is culturally and artistically rich: there’s incredibly talented artists, filmmakers, actors, performers, and poets. This makes for huge engagement with the arts, which reinforces the value of what we do. 

My and Candice’s work intersects in so many ways. The arts have a really strong impact on mental and public health, making Gratitude Graffiti a perfect collaboration. This year, we have around 30 participating businesses. This project is especially powerful because it’s something that doesn’t require huge funding. You just need markers and some Windex. It’s an open invitation to any type of public setting—businesses, churches, hospitals, schools, even driveways. People are becoming creative just to be part of this. It’s a beautiful thing. 

Davenport: I created Gratitude Graffiti in 2012 with Lucila McElroy, when I was Maplewood’s public health nurse. I’m its Health Officer now, and recently collaborated with Andrea to restart the project. It began from reflecting on how the practice of gratitude can change lives. When you drown out the noise and focus on the good, your life is actually pretty wonderful. 

We wanted to get this message out, and there’s nothing more engaging than art. Adults learn best through experience and experimenting. Gratitude Graffiti facilitates the mind-body physical connection by examining mental health in a fun, interactive way. Connecting your head to your heart and putting this outside yourself changes things, for you and the spaces around you. 

As the project grows beyond Maplewood, what makes it continue to resonate?

Davenport: It originally had to stop in 2016 because my partner, Lucila, moved to Vancouver. Funnily enough, that’s part of how it began spreading beyond New Jersey. Lucila’s a well-traveled person and sprinkled it around wherever she went. Then other people picked it up and that process continued! 

It’s also grown through social media and our website, where we provide a logo and instructions. People can essentially do what they want with it, so it’s easy to adopt. Even though we took a break, the project kept growing. Every iteration is transformative, but it’s also similar across places. It’s the same process: different community, but same outcomes. For the community, this is their town. These are places they inhabit every day, seeing the same people, the same faces. When you add Gratitude Graffiti, it looks completely different. You can’t forget it when it goes away. People consistently see their homes in new lights, and it’s beautiful. 

There’s so much talk about isolation and disconnection from our communities. Gratitude takes you away from whatever’s distracting you and forces you to be present. It just makes you feel good. If you’re outside writing or inside witnessing it, the space you’re in becomes more engaging; your self-awareness heightens. Suddenly, you want to contribute to this community too. What was once a window becomes a canvas, and the movement keeps growing.

Teutli: Candice and I began distributing kits earlier this month. I went into a smoothie shop, and the person behind the counter got so excited. We tested it on the window, and he wrote, “I am thankful for you coming.” I was just like, “I’m grateful for you!” It was a bonding moment with a complete stranger, because we were suddenly part of something together. 

That’s something I love about this project. It’s not geared to a specific community or demographic. It focuses on human connection. I think that’s the beauty of why it can spread so quickly and easily. In the end, we’re all grateful for something. Maybe we don’t think about it often, but reflecting offers a nice pause. If you go somewhere to pick up a smoothie and you look up from your phone, Gratitude Graffiti creates a spark, a connection: a moment of also asking yourself, “What am I thankful for?”

Photo Credit: The Gratitude Graffiti Project

It’s rare that I get to chat with folks working in government. As public servants, what are the unique considerations you have when using creativity for your community work?

Teutli: One huge help is belonging to a community that is already so invested in the arts. Because of this, the township officials really support this work. A lot of what I do is community outreach. Instead of curating exhibitions or implementing my own programming, I reach out to people and see how we can support their desires. As a public servant, you might have your own agenda, but you must ensure you’re still listening to the community and understanding their needs.

All our events are free, which is crucial. It’s our job to facilitate these kinds of moments: accessible, creative outlets for people to come together and express themselves without judgement. A community’s strength is where there’s opportunities to engage with yourself and people different from you. My hope is to support a healthy community that feels welcome, included, and supported to grow in creative ways. 

Davenport: Because I’m the health officer, people are sometimes surprised that I started this project. I believe we can live in both places. We can be administrators and also be creative artists. In our roles, we act as artists every day. Our creativity helps us imagine how we can make things happen, especially on a budget. Gratitude Graffiti is an example of how it can all click. 

When you first see someone writing, it’s mundane. It’s just marker on a window. But when you see it taking place collectively, the mundane is made extraordinary. Washing dishes, feeding your kids—it’s mundane, but then it becomes so much more. You become thankful that you have food on the table, that you have a child you get to feed. You come to appreciate the nuances. When you can be grateful for moments like these, this gratitude spreads, and you develop pride in yourself and your community. When you’re proud of your community, you take care of it, which translates into taking care of each other.

Through initiatives like these, local leaders can promote positive mental health outcomes and increased community bonds year-round. This November, we’re excited to see how Gratitude Graffiti continues to inspire people around the world to take a moment to appreciate the good. Not only is this crucial for individual mental health, but it can form lasting, meaningful connections with infinite potential to pay it forward. A huge thank-you to Andrea and Candice for taking the time to chat, and for all they do for Maplewood!

To keep up with the Gratitude Graffiti project, follow them on Instagram here.