Join us in celebrating the creativity of young artists, discovering the impactful role of art in professional environments, and appreciating the diverse stories that define San Diego!
Summer Mural Season
The school year has officially ended, and summer mural season is upon us! Our mural team has been hard at work completing three stunning new murals at the Museum School in Banker’s Hill, Collier Park in La Mesa, and the David’s Harp Foundation in East Village.
Our first summer mural project was completed at the Museum School, just in time before the school year ended. Designed by our Mural Program Manager, Isabel Halpern, this project involved each and every student from kindergarten through 8th grade. It was a joyful way to close the school year. ArtReach created 2 murals, both located in the school’s central courtyard—a space for eating, gardening, gathering, and school-wide events. The murals celebrate growth, acceptance, collaboration, and all the unique aspects that make the Museum School special: sewing, art, music, drama, field trips to Balboa Park, sports, kindness, discovery, nature, friendship, and more. Each tile around the central arch of the larger mural was painted individually by students, offering reflections on daily life, activities, and values at the Museum School.
Next, our team worked on the mural at the David’s Harp Foundation, led and designed by our long-time collaborator, Regan Russell. This mural, created for the entrance to their incredible space, features imagery inspired by David’s Harp lead student artist, Elisa. The design process was truly collaborative, with Elisa providing the creative inspiration and ideas, and Regan interpreting and rendering them. The overarching theme pays tribute to Elisa’s story of transformation and growth. From left to right, the imagery transitions from broken music notes, a fractured wall, and cooler colors to complete music notes, a restored brick wall, and warmer colors. This echoes the journey many David’s Harp students undergo as they attend classes, receive mentorship, and embark on a new chapter in their lives.
Finally, we ventured to the beautiful city of La Mesa to work on a mural at the entrance of the newly renovated Collier Park. Designed by ArtReach Mural Artist Partner Lucía Sánchez, this project was created in partnership with the City of La Mesa, La Mesa Parks and Recreation Foundation, and La Mesa Community Services. We engaged over 40 participants of all ages in both the ideation and painting of this mural, resulting in a serene and vibrant welcome for all visitors. This piece features local flora and fauna, including California poppies, Allen’s Hummingbird, Mourning Cloak butterflies, San Diego Alligator Lizards, Bush Sunflowers, and more. It highlights the beautiful hills, paths, and natural environment of the park and the surrounding landscape of La Mesa, known as the ‘Jewel of the Hills.’ This mural adds a peaceful and welcoming touch to Collier Park, and we are grateful to all the neighbors and community members who helped paint this piece with care.
Summer Residency Programs
This summer, ArtReach Teaching Artists have been busy with workshops for youth throughout San Diego County. We worked hard to develop fun and engaging art lessons for the summer and are having a blast implementing them with student artists. Students learn about a contemporary artist and art technique each day and then create a unique art project from their inspiration. We wanted to express how we celebrate summer so our art projects included cakes, ice cream sundaes, colorful expressive abstracts, and animals. All of our favorite summer things are made into colorful art projects! We can tell the students had a blast creating with us and we can’t wait to share more of their art with parents and families at our upcoming culminating art shows.
Summer Residency Programs
Our Summer workshop series may have been short, but it was definitely sweet! Artist Gracie Rhoads took us through the wheel-throwing process using miniature wheels, and we loved seeing everyone’s mini pots and vessels come to life!
As we prepare to move out of our current studio space, we’ve been focusing on taking our Artist-led visual art workshops to different locations around San Diego. Our community Programs team provides open-ended arts & crafts workshops for adults at Central Library’s Creative Collective on the 1st & 3rd Tuesdays of each month. Sign up for an upcoming class!
If you want more art and ArtReach in your life this July, sign up for one or many of our public library workshops available throughout SD this month! We’re looking forward to welcoming you into our new HQ for our fall workshop programs later this year! Until then, keep cool and keep creating!
Art at Benchley-Weinberger Elementary
Our Residency Program is happy to highlight the success of our two-year partnership with Benchley-Weinberger Elementary, which began in 2022. Led by Teaching Artist Angela Russell and supported by Benchley’s PTA, this collaboration brought many fun & colorful art lessons into the classrooms. A student favorite was Abstract Botanicals, inspired by the artist Taehyoung Jeon. The students were amazed by Jeon’s technique of creating organic plant forms from geometric shapes. The workshop not only introduced them to innovative artistic techniques but also encouraged them to think deeply about design elements. Composition, balance, and color were explored while they discussed how an artist’s choices can lead them to their own unique style.
Taehyoung Jeon’s illustrations made a significant impact on the students, sparking their creativity which was evidenced by the incredible variety of plants they were able to create. We are proud of the artistic growth and excitement this residency brought to the Benchley-Weinberger community and look forward to all of the amazing partnerships to come next year!
ArtReach in the News
Susan Edelstein from the San Diego Jewish Journal recently sat down with our Advancement Manager, Anna Laroque, to discuss our work in bringing arts education back to local schools. Throughout their talk, Anna highlighted the critical role of arts in young people’s creative development and how ArtReach’s initiatives, such as classroom workshops and community projects, aim to restore and enhance these vital experiences for children.
Anna shared highlights from our Mural Program, which transforms school and community spaces through collaborative, youth-led mural projects. The program involves students and community members from the initial concept to the final painting, fostering a sense of ownership and pride in the artwork created. Additionally, ArtReach’s Artist Residency Program brings customized visual arts curriculum to schools without existing arts programs, integrating social-emotional learning to support overall human development.
We want to thank Susan and the San Diego Jewish Journal for the opportunity to discuss the importance of arts education! Please click the button below to read the full conversation between Susan and Anna.
Partner Highlight // Colorama
We want to give a shoutout to our amazing friends at Colorama! They are incredible partners, regularly assisting with our mural projects. Thanks to them, we were able to give our new office a fresh coat of paint as we get ready to open to the public. We couldn’t have done this without their support!
Colorama Paint is a family-owned, independent paint center with a selection of paints, wood finishes, waterproofing systems, and concrete resurfacing solutions. Their stores in downtown Vista and central San Diego are staffed by a team of experts who can recommend the right products for your project! If you get a chance, swing by Colorama and show them some love.
Youth Art Show at Liberty Station ArtWalk
ArtReach is excited to announce an opportunity for young artists to showcase their talent in our upcoming Youth Art Show! We invite all youth ages 4-18 to submit art that is exactly 6 inches wide by 6 inches tall, inspired by where their dreams take them.
Submissions must be received by Friday, August 2nd to be exhibited and available for purchase at the ArtWalk Liberty Station on August 3rd-4th. As part of the Youth Art Show, 100% of the proceeds will support ArtReach’s mission to ignite youth creativity through visual arts expression and community connection. For more details and submission information, please visit our website.
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