HARTFORD, Conn. (WTNH) — The creation of an 18-story mural is underway in downtown Hartford. The mural will be painted on The Millennium apartment building at 50 Morgan St.

The mural project is being facilitated by The Rise Up Group, a local non-profit organization that empowers communities through public art and education. The group has organized the creation of over 100 other murals in the state. The Millennium project is estimated to cost $100,000. Shelburne Global, the owner of The Millennium, the Greater Hartford Arts Council, and the Edward Roberts Foundation are helping to fund the project.

“Everything from scaffolding to the hundreds of gallons of paint we’re going to use, it’s a really expensive production,” Matt Conway, the executive Director of The Rise Group, said.

Conway said the organization had received an outpouring of support from other murals in the state.

“Hearing the reactions and seeing people’s faces,” Conway said. “It’s really the emotion that it gives people, and the hope and the joy.”

Hartford Artist Michael Rice is the vision behind the group’s latest artwork. It will be the largest mural Rice has ever completed.

“This is actually going to show a child opening a jar of fireflies and releasing them, and it’s going to be painted in a 3D style so it will look like it’s emerging from the wall,” Rice said. “In my opinion, public art especially kind of breaks down barriers, and it allows people to come together and celebrate in something they might not normally come together around.”

Rice said he hopes this mural brings the community hope and wonder. The mural is scheduled to be finished around the end of June but could be delayed due to weather or other unforeseen circumstances.