University of Houston Downtown’s Recognizable Gator Mural to Be Knocked Down

In March 2015, the University of Houston Downtown proudly wrote on their website that French artist Sebastien “Mr. D” Boileau was working on a mural on the side of a storage building on campus. His masterpiece in progress was a surprisingly detailed and eye-catching portrait of a gator, evoking the school’s mascot, Ed-U-Gator. “There’s a meaning behind it,” Boileau said. “The gator is pictured bursting through the wall, representing UHD students who are preparing to break out into their professional careers.”

Sadly, the gator’s reign on the wall has come to an end. ABC 13 reports that the entire structure will be knocked down this weekend, and the Ed-U-Gator mural’s demise will make way for more parking.

Judging by the comments on Facebook, students aren’t thrilled with the decision. ChristinaMarie Labay writes, “This is awful. Why not build up (parking garage) instead of out to avoid destroying the most beautiful part of the campus? The gravel lot across from the Business building would be perfect since it’s in terrible condition anyway.”

ABC 13 writes that the parking lot on Daly Street will close on Friday and Saturday for the demolition, so if you want to get one last photo with the powerful gator, stop by the University of Houston Downtown campus ASAP.

LAST DAY to see the #uhdgatorwall !!…… IMPRESSIVE DEMO will be happening tomorrow ( Thursday July 27 ) to allow for new construction/ SLIDE FOR MORE PICS . wall is located at 500 north main st Houston TX . #uhdgatorwall #demo #mrd1987 #liquitex #eyefulart @shonuff1983 @petermolick #houstonstreetart pic by @amabyaisha @tgranovsky THANK YOU TO ALL INVOLVED on this memorable project ….

A post shared by Sebastien "Mr.D" Boileau (@mrd1987) on Jul 26, 2017 at 5:34am PDT