Public Art for the Masses
Public Art for the Masses
Murals of Connecticut
Connecticut may not be the first thing that comes to mind when thinking about art, but this small state sure does pack a punch when it comes to public art in the form of murals. From bigger cities to small towns, there are numerous murals lining building walls, bridge underpasses, and other various places out in the open for all to view and enjoy.
Many of these murals have been facilitated by a small organization called The RiseUP Group. RiseUP for Arts is a project started by this non-profit in 2015 to create public art that is inclusive and accessible for anyone. They have completed over 100 (and counting) murals and place-making projects throughout Connecticut, work with 40+ local artists, partner with hundreds of communities and organizations, and host over 1,000 volunteers per year to help paint their murals. RiseUP for Arts creates public art through donations, grants, and community goodwill. They support artists, cities, other nonprofits, companies, and local community members in making their mural projects come to life as well as help create the vision and manage the entire process to beautify communities through public art.
In addition to their typical mural facilitation, RiseUP is also partnering with 39 communities across Connecticut to create 39 large-scale, highly visible murals that will depict the message and symbols of the world Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. spoke about as well as highlighting other local and national Civil Rights Leaders. The 39 murals are representative of the 39 years of MLK's life, as an honor to his life and mission.
Each mural will be completed by a Connecticut based artist along with local emerging artists and the community at large. The MLK39 murals will be a symbol for each community to demonstrate their commitment to racial equity and fighting injustice.
Equity is not only represented in the content of the murals themselves, but also in the way the murals are facilitated. The beauty of the RiseUP murals is that they are painted by a wide variety of artists - from the internationally recognized, to newer emerging artists, to volunteer members of the community picking up a paint brush for the first time. Two of the more well-recognized mural artists in the Connecticut mural scene (and beyond) are ARCY and Ben Keller. The murals shown as the title image, as well as the mural above are painted by these two artists. Throughout their careers, both ARCY and Ben Keller have taken their murals far beyond the boundaries of Connecticut, but both began their art careers in Connecticut and still reside there today.
Interested in more? Read more about RiseUP and their upcoming mural projects here.
Designer Monologues the Podcast from IIDA New England with your host Katie Corcoran Garcia is officially LIVE!! On this show, we’ll share the stories behind the design of repurposing, developing and reshaping our communities. Incubated from the minds and skills of New England’s talented design community, you’ll hear how visual inspiration can come from nature, our history, current trends and more as we take you on a story-telling journey behind design.
Check out our latest episode here.
'TIS THE SEASON
With a lot of reflection at the start of 2022, I personally decided this year would be about healing and growth, both personally and professionally. Irrespective of the noise and distractions of the world around us, I have tried to stay true to this throughout the year. When we had our IIDANE Board retreat in July, the Board shared our personal stories of growth in order to bring us together for the benefit of the chapter. It was amazing to hear the journeys we had all taken to that point in time.
I know what we do as volunteers for our members and design community is not always easy. We each have families, friends, loved ones and jobs we are each responsible to, before we volunteer for IIDANE. With that in mind, it really touches me how much dedication each of our volunteers contributes to the success of our chapter. Because of you we had an incredible year! Here's a quick recap:
Our successful 2022 Chapter Sponsor Ski Trip. 2023 is right around the corner - you don’t want to miss this.
The Business Leaders Breakfast had an incredible last-minute transition to a very successful remote format. 2023 will definitely be a “Do Not Miss” event! The speaker is fantastic!
The 2022 Annual meeting was back in person and hybrid allowing greater access to all our volunteers. So we were able to celebrate the hundreds of dedicated individuals that serve as chapter volunteers.
Croquet – What a day indeed! It was a Crazy Hot Day but it is events like this that we cherish and love. 2023 is an anniversary year… so excited!
Design Awards offered an amazing hybrid format this year! People were brought to tears with the interviews you shared and celebrating all the amazing entries and winners!
Our new Block Party with the unfettered determination of the EDI and Sponsorship committees with this new event and the challenges it presented, you brought us a successful event; one I cannot wait to see again in 2023.
Art Uncorked showcased our many creative members, sharing their talents.
The new Fashion Show format had so much hard work that went into this event. I can not thank the committee enough. It was a huge success! Another can not miss in the year ahead.
All of our continuing Professional Development events and programs. Many of our future leaders are gaining beneficial skills from what we offer.
Community Engagement (previously Philanthropy) activities, kayaking, Volunteer Days, Craft making with The Italian Home for Children. Giving back is the only way to move forward!
Our 2022 Catalyst Grant Award supporting our EDI Committee’s efforts to help us learn and grow. The workshop we were able to hold exclusively for our volunteers this past Spring was phenomenal.
With 2023 planning fully underway, there is a lot to look forward to! Your IIDANE Board of Directors is here to serve you. Please reach out to any one of us if there is anything we can do to make your IIDANE experience a better one. Without you, none of this would be possible. Cheers to an amazing 2022 and an even better 2023!
Lisa Statkiewicz
President, IIDA NE Chapter
Check out the list of IIDA New England Emerging Leaders Network (ELN) Class of 2022 and the Leadership Exploration & Development (LEAD) Class of 2022!
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