2017 Ajo Street Mural Gathering

Project Organizers in front of Miss Hazzards New Ajo Mural

From March 23rd to March 26th dozens of artists gathered in Ajo Arizona, the heart of the desert, to create over 50 beautiful murals in one weekend. Our feature artist this year was Harriet Wood aka Miss Hazzard from Barcelona who created a massive mural in homage to the desert.

Art's Brigade muralists Valeria Hutchings, Porter McDonald, Nikki Ortiz, Emma Bayne, Kat Anderson, Michael Schwartz and Harold Curtis were among the more than 30 mural teams painting. The 2017 organizing team included Caitlyn Allen, Morgana Wallace-Cooper, Kat Anderson, Michael Schwartz, Porter McDonald, Harriet Wood and Martina Dawley.

The Grange, prepared by Americorp Workers Before

Miss Hazard in action.

This coming together of artists, diverse in culture, disciplines and practice - started on the intersection of three nations, the United States, the Tohono O'odham Nation and Mexico. The Ajo Street mural project started in 2015 as artists from throughout southern Arizona created murals of all sizes in the center of Ajo, AZ. The following year (2016) Ajo youth and artists came to Tucson for a Community Build Day event. In 2017 Tucson artists returned to Ajo for our third year of collaborations and mural painting on a large grange.

The Grange before Harriet's mural....

Ajo is in the Sonoran Desert, tucked away in Western Pima County in Arizona, about 120 miles southwest of Phoenix and 130 miles west of Tucson. Ajo is landlocked with the Tohono O'odham Nation to the east, Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument to the south, and the Cabeza Prieta National Wildlife Refuge and Goldwater Gunnery Range to the north and west. The Plaza, built in 1917, serves as a place of beauty and also the location of many community events such as the traditional 4th of July and Christmas Eve celebrations. The town has been economically depressed since the large open pit mine closed in the 80's following a strike for higher wages. When copper content levels fell, and as the mine grew in scale arsenic was used in the leeching process. The result was devastating. Today arsenic is found in the soil and water, illustrated by the number of rusting cars and equipment. This massive environmental challenge remains the elephant in the room.

Our youngest muralist, Silas Anderson (Kat's son :) has two murals now!

Kat Anderson's (Silas's mom:) 2 of her new 2017 Ajo Murals

"Juntos" by Niki Ortiz, Ajo, AZ 2017

Emma working on her Ajo Mural, 2017

 Valeria Hutching's new narrative Mural in Ajo

Harold Curtis's Ajo Mural

Michael Schwartz, "Arsenic" Ajo Mural

Porter McDonalds new Ajo Mural

"The project is a framework for larger national and international

Emma Bayne in Ajo

dialogue to promote socially engaged practice and community based arts. I believe street art enhances its own surroundings and provides an opportunity for public interaction and community conversation. This is not only an opportunity for renewal in connections within the community but a chance to forge and create stronger bonds between the town and its neighbors in Mexico." - Miss Hazzard

This little ancestor visited each mural, and muralist. 

Collaborating groups include Tucson Arts Brigade, ISDA, USDAC Border Arts Group, Neoglyphix
and ASAP (Ajo Street Art Project).

Muralists and assistants painting

More weekend highlights included New Orleans based Mondo Bizarro and Art Spot Productions who provided musical and theatrical performance. Saturday night included a community potluck and art exhibition opening, complete with delicious after dinner treats at Art Under the Arches Gallery. That exhibit continues through May 1.

Caitlyn tries her hand at graffiti art

These murals have now become a landmark and destination for the tiny town as tourists from throughout the world get to see and enjoy over 50 murals painted by artists.  All the more reason to plan a trip to Ajo Arizona and perhaps at the beautiful Sonoran Desert Retreat Center, enjoy the murals, quiet days, fine people, food and scenery.


Funding for this project was made possible by the Puffin Foundation without whom this initiative would not have been possible. Additional support was provided by the Arts Foundation of Southern Arizona and the Tucson Arts Brigade! Thank You!

Additional Writings about the Festival: 

Ajo Arts Weekend: Splashes of Spring Color in the Sonoran Desert

THE HEALING POWER OF MUSIC EVENT

THE HEALING POWER OF MUSIC EVENT

Featuring:
the Gabriel Ayala Quintet
AND…
the Grammy Nominated
R. Carlos Nakai Quartet


Dates: Feb 24, Feb 25 and Feb 26, 2017
Time:  Friday, Feb 24 7:00PM ,  Saturday Feb 25th  10am-9:30pm and Sunday February 26th: 10-5pm.
Location:   Edward B. Berger Performing Arts Center, 1200 W. Speedway Blvd, Tucson, AZ  (map)
Investment:  $25 > $250

PURCHASE TICKETS HERE 

 A percentage of tickets ordered via Arts Brigade links goes to benefit TAB Mural Arts programs and activities. Thank you for your support!

This 3-day event consists of beautiful and powerful healing music, and incredible mind-blowing science and moving film. We’ll be highlighting and EXPERIENCING music’s power to create healing, harmony and happiness in your life.

The event will feature:

• The Gabriel Ayala Quintet
• R. Carlos Nakai and the R. Carlos Nakai Quartet: The world’s premier player of the Native American flute.
• Dr. Melinda Connor: How Music Heals the Brain
• Tiamo De Vettori- Inspirational Singing at it’s Finest L.A. Music Award’s “Singer/Songwriter of the Year” & San Diego’s “Best Songwriter”
• Mark Romero – NASA Scientist Verified Musical Energy Healing
• Trey Vincent, 13 year old Music Prodigy , recovered from Autism with music. Get ready to have your mind blown!
• Marthajane Vincent: How My Son Recovered From Autism using Music (discussion)
• Leigh Lesho: Folk/Pop/Country/Rock Music infused with the Yoga of Sound (musical performance)
• Mystic Minstrel, Chad Wilkins
• Mark Scaramuzzo, from the up and coming Tucson pop/rock group Orange Kids will play Uklele tunes to make us happy!
• And Robert Villa deeply move you with his skill as a master violinist.

A percentage of tickets ordered via Arts Brigade links goes to benefit TAB Mural Arts programs and activities. Thank you for your support! 

PURCHASE TICKETS HERE 

Call to Artists International Street Art Happening: Ajo Arizona March 23-25, 2017

Call to Artists International Street Art Happening: Ajo Arizona March 23-25, 2017

Join us for a weekend of Street painting, music, food and conversation in the heart of the Sonoran Desert. Painting will begin March 17th and will culminate in a large multi-faceted community painting event the weekend of March 24-25.

Artists: To ensure wall space, prep, and material needs email: a mural design along with a short bio and contact info to Caitlyn@isdanet.org by January 31st

Presented by:

Ajo Street Art Project, Tucson Arts Brigade, Neoglyphix,  International Sonoran Desert Alliance, USDAC Border Arts Group,  Sonoran Cultural Exchange

Late submissions will be accepted however we cannot guarantee materials or wall space for entries received after January 31st

Questions call 602-541-5356 or email Caitlyn@isdanet.org

The Ajo Street mural project started in 2015 as I led artists from throughout southern Arizona in the creation of more than 30 murals of all sizes in the center of Ajo, AZ. The following year Ajo youth and artists came to Tucson for a Community Build Day event. In 2017 Tucson artists return to Ajo for our third year of collaborations and mural painting on a large grange.

Ajo is in the Sonoran Desert, tucked away in Western Pima County in Arizona, about 120 miles southwest of Phoenix and 130 miles west of Tucson. Ajo is landlocked with the Tohono O'odham Nation to the east, Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument to the south, and the Cabeza Prieta National Wildlife Refuge and Goldwater Gunnery Range to the north and west.

First Annual Paint-A-Thon to Fund New Tucson Murals

"Second Saturday Downtown Paint-a-Thon!”

Tucson Arts Brigade Invites You to Paint with Them at Second Saturday Paint-a-Thon Fundraiser on Jan 14, 6 - 10pm

Tucson, AZ - Local non-profit organization Tucson Arts Brigade, responsible for the Tucson Mural Arts Program and many new and beautiful downtown murals, is hosting a fundraising event on Saturday, January 14th  from 6 - 10pm at Monsoon Collective 127 N 5th Ave.  Guests are invited to join in painting murals on free walls and let their creativity loose while mingling among other art-minded Tucson folk and providing some much-needed funding for this great arts non-profit. 

Entry is $10 a person and all ages are welcome.  Snacks, brushes, and walls will be provided, but we do ask that you bring your own paint as ours will be limited!

Profits from this fundraiser will go directly to maintaining existing murals, providing materials and supplies for the creation of new murals, and keeping the Tucson Arts Brigade active and running.

TUCSON ARTS BRIGADE, INC. (TAB) is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) arts and education organization dedicated to participatory community arts with an emphasis on facilitating inter-group opportunities for youth, elders, and adults.

Monsoon Collective is an exhibition and temporary art space that can be found at 127 N 5th Ave, Tucson, AZ 85701, just south of Thunder Canyon Brewery. Call 520-791-9359 for more information, or write us at info@TucsonArtsBrigade.org

Project Profiles: Emma Bayne and Manny Garcia

Tucson Arts Brigade muralists are hard at work. We are so excited to share a few snapshots of upcoming mural projects.

Every week we are contacted by artists who want to paint the town. Each mural takes a considerable amount of time. Artists design the work of art, get it approved, gather materials, prepare the wall, transfer the design, paint the mural and finally protect the mural from the elements. Imagine a huge canvas, painted outdoors. It takes special tools, techniques, materials  and a lot of patience. We are now seeking donations for our neighborhood mural program. Most murals range in cost from $500. to $10,000. depending on the scope of the project. TAB works closely with artists creating a collaborative environment where artists share skills, resources and time to accomplish projects. Here are a few snapshots of muralists we are working with this month;

Every donation you make helps bring smiles to peoples faces;

Manny Garcia is an 80 year old artist. He paints on all sorts of objects like fords and wants to paint a mural depicting the wildlife of Tucson. He is really excited to work on a small wall and sent in this design, reminding us that he will be adding many more plants. Manny says he just wants to share the natural beauty of this place, and leave his mark on the town he loves so much.

We are seeking a highly visible smooth wall about 5 feet high by 14 feet long for his mural.

Emma Bayne is 19 and a freshman at the University of Arizona for Art Education. Her ultimate goal is to teach middle to high school art and how to be the next generation of artists. She was born in Denver Colorado, but raised here in Tucson. She has always loved Tucson’s character, especially the art community.

She has designed a mural for the North West neighborhood and writes: “My mural is about rebirth and creativity. It is a model of new life and holds personal significance in that I am starting on this new phase of life, growing older and going to college. I believe that life is circular and death only leads to new and beautiful life. In the mural the skulls represent the past and death, the butterfly of sacred rejuvenation and originality and the spiral of the cycle of rebirth. I chose the tiger swallowtail butterfly because it is my dad’s favorite animal, his symbol of sorts and my dad is the biggest inspiration and motivation in me pursuing art. I tied in the desert flora and fauna to represent Tucson’s amazing wildlife, and used bright colors to give the feel of fresh beginnings. I hope this mural evokes happiness and inspires to community to be thankful of life and to use their resources and time in creative ways. I love being able to give something back to the community which raised me by doing something I love to do.”

Goal: $1500.

We are also seeking to raise $1500. for materials, to manage the project, document and coordinate unveiling celebrations.

Donate to Tucson Arts Brigade Today and help make these murals become a reality.

By Mail: TAB POB 545, Tucson, AZ 85702

On Line: http://bit.ly/YrIrJh

Tucson Loves Murals!

Tucson Loves Murals!

You helped fund 16 new murals in 2016, and all the work we do is dedicated to you. It’s your tax-deductible investment that results in the murals you love. We know these works have become destinations and landmarks, with people coming downtown for a mural tour, a meal and entertainment.  We hear so many personal stories of people being inspired by these colorful works.

Now it's your turn. We need your help to fund the creation of new works, maintain and preserve existing murals and provide educational opportunities for our community to learn more about what it takes to create these epic works of art.

This holiday season we want to invite everyone to chip in to help paint the town in 2017. Image if everyone who enjoyed these murals was able to donate $50 or $100! So lets keep moving forward and create some new murals in 2017!

Here is how you can help:

New Murals Fund
The new Murals Fund supports the creation of new murals throughout Tucson. Currently we are working on the Bronx Wash Murals at 4th Ave and Linden and gathering designs for spring murals such as the ones in Ajo, AZ.

Donate to the New Murals Fund

Mural Preservation Fund
We maintain over 30 mural sites throughout Tucson. Through wear and tear these works often need maintenance or preservation. Often these repairs are done by student artists and emerging muralists, providing a source of hands on experience.

Donate to the Mural Preservation Fund 




Mural Education Fund
Each year TAB provides mural tours, presentations and hands on mural arts education experiences for youth in Pima County. This fund is used to hire teaching artists to facilitate murals in schools, community centers and other places.

Donate to the Mural Education Fund


Lets Paint the town!

Here is a handy Flier you can download and share!

Community Mural Forum Oct. 26 at Center for Photography’s Auditorium

The University of Arizona School of Art is partnering with The Tucson Arts Brigade Mural Arts Program, to offer an exciting public event discussing the present and future state of public murals in Tucson.

Colin Blakely, Director and Professor, School of Art, and Michael B. Schwartz, Temple’s Tyler School of Art ‘88/UA MFA ‘91, Founder and Director of Tucson Arts Brigade and its Mural Program, will be inviting the greater arts community, students, faculty, the School of Art Board and the City of Tucson mural advocates for a panel discussion about the mural arts in Tucson, focusing specifically on the programs’ downtown murals and ongoing efforts to create a sustainable mural program in the city.

The panel takes place on October 26, 2016, 5:30 – 7:00, in the Center for Photography’s Auditorium on the U of A campus. The evening will feature a discussion with Blakely, Schwartz (formerly part of the City of Philadelphia’s Mural Program), Prof. Alfred Quiroz (mural artist of record on campus and in the studios); the City of Tucson’s prominent muralists which include Ignacia Garcia and To-Ree-Nee Wolf; and Camila Bekat, City of Tucson’s Office of Economic & Business Development.

The School of Art Advisory Board, in discussing a worldwide mural trend early last spring, quickly discovered Tucson Arts Brigade initiative to support the creation of murals in neighborhoods, schools and community centers.

The latest initiative led by the Tucson Arts Brigade and launched in May ‘16 resulted in eight murals in the downtown area and was funded by Tohono O’odham Nation with additional support from the City of Tucson. The Advisory Board subsequently connected Schwartz to Mr. Blakely, whose second year goals include expanding community outreach within the School of Art. “Tucson is a vibrant community for artists, and the university has an important role to play in recognizing and supporting that community. Works of public art like the Tucson Arts Brigade’s mural project remind us of art’s ability to impact our everyday lives in positive ways,” says Blakely.

The muralists will receive a modest honorarium from the UA School of Art while the panel discussion will provide important recognition for the launch of one of the Southwest region’s greatest mural development projects. “The mural program seeks to create an outdoor gallery that embraces local, national and international talent, creating paid opportunities for artists and promoting Tucson as a world class exotic destination.” says Schwartz.

Promoting these local and regional artists’ murals dovetails with Tucson being named UNESCO’s first top City in Gastronomy, also being ranked 7th Best Music City in USA, and all moving the spotlight onto Tucson as a relevant and ascending national center for the arts.