More than 50 years after his famous speech, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s dream lives on in the everyday lives of San Diegans, this time in the form of a mural along the eastbound side of State Route 94.

The mural spans 225 feet long and stands 20 feet high and it was created by the hands of San Diego State art professors Neil Shigley and Philip Matzigkeit.

The murals location was secured by a Caltrans grant more than six years ago and has been a work in progress for Matzigkeit. He met with Shigley about a year ago and upon seeing Shigley’s sketches, of King, he knew he found the perfect portrait artist for his project.

Of his many pieces, Shigley said this public mural is “by far the most important piece (he’s) worked on or will work on in the future.”

“I think the responsibility of all fathers and all mothers to their children is to share what his life was about, to pass on his legacy—one that he lived for, one that he worked so hard for, one that he fought for and one that he ultimately died for so that (our) children can carry on in some way his legacy,” Shigley said. “That’s what I hoped it would lead to; when people see that (mural), it brings to mind the great work this man did and sacrifice (he made) for all of us.”

The mural, inspired by an African woodblock style, was unveiled last Saturday during a dedication event. The event was accompanied by an original composition performed by SDSU Assistant Professor of Music Richard Thompson. The mural now stands 20-feet high and 225-feet long symbolizing to San Diegans the passion King had.

“(King) was such a great man. He changed the world, really, in a lot of ways; he changed people’s ideas, changed how they think of themselves and others (and) he did it all with his words, with his ideas, with his passion, with his love. That’s what sets him apart, sets him above, so many other people who have affected the world,” Shigley said.