A lifelong Oak Parker is being celebrated for her work in creating opportunities for youth to learn about various industries and to break into fields that haven’t traditionally been welcoming.
Maya Bird-Murphy, a lifelong resident of Oak Park and 2011 graduate of Oak Park and River Forest High School, was awarded $50,000 for her work through her non-profit Mobile Makers as part of the 2024 USA Fellows through United States Artist.
Inspired by her own experience in the architectural world, Bird-Murphy said while she had a passion for architecture that was cultivated through various classes at OPRF, after entering the workplace, she found herself in rooms with predominantly white men after returning back to the Chicagoland area and working with firms.
“I realized really quickly that I didn’t mesh with the office life and decided to start the non-profit,” said the Ball State University graduate, adding a lot of the background work had already been developed as her thesis while in graduate school.
“Architecture is very much white and male, that was what was a huge issue for me,” said Bird-Murphy, a Black woman. “I was very often the only person of color in my offices. That is when I really started to think ‘how can I do something to address this problem,’ because it is an architecture wide problem all over the U.S.”
Mobile Markers, which she founded in 2017, was created to help diversify the architecture field by teaching young people about design and bringing accessibility to different types or programs including architecture, design, 3D fabrication and basic instruction of different tools.
“It is all about skill building, learning skills in those areas but also a community aspect,” Bird-Murphy said. “It doesn’t really matter what type of skills we are learning, it always somehow comes back to community and trying to figure out how to make our built environment more equitable.”
With their new physical space in the Humboldt Park neighborhood opening up around April, Mobile Makers seeks to reach students from across the entire Chicagoland area, including Oak Park.
Bird-Murphy was notified this past October that she had been selected as one of the 50 total recipients to be awarded the fellowship.
“It was very exciting to get the email,” Bird-Murphy said. “I think it was mostly exciting because I run a nonprofit. I started it when I was 25, it wasn’t like I had my own money. This has always been a thing where I worked multiple jobs to make it work.”
Bird-Murphy said she unapologetically will be using the $50,000 to make sure to properly compensate herself for her work after going through years of financial struggle, oftentimes paying herself last or not at all. According to the fellowship website, recipients are awarded “unrestricted money that the artist can use in any way they would like.”
Because of the openness of the fellowship, Bird-Murphy will be using the funds to play catch-up and give herself a wage, which she has been known to sacrifice at times to ensure the non-profit has what it needs to continue serving the community.
“This to me was a very life changing award because it allows me to catch up from the many years of not paying myself enough and trying to make ends meet,” she said. “I don’t necessarily have plans; I think I finally have savings and that is an amazing thing. I am definitely just using it to become financially stable.”
Since it was founded, the fellow has awarded more than $41 million to more than 850 recipients. According to their website, the USA Fellowships are made possible by various organizations’ contributions, including the Pritzker Pucker Family Foundation of Chicago.
In the realm of non-profit work, Bird-Murphy said it is important for her to be okay so that the organization can be ok.
“I think that me being in a more comfortable place is just going to help with the impact and I am not constantly thinking about paying rent. It eases the pressure on all sides,” she said.
As Mobile Makers continues to grow, Bird-Murphy said she hopes to continue to have her work create a safe and holistic third-space to support young people.
“The money is of course really important but it is not necessarily the point,” she said. “I think showing our impact is more important.”
More information on Mobile Makers can be found online.