SAN DIEGANS GIVING BACK
APRIL 30, 2025
Many people and organizations in San Diego are engaged in the business of giving. They give to others and their communities because it’s what they do. This story will highlight the work of ArtReach, which provides art experiences and education to San Diego public school students on site and within ArtReach’s neighborhood studio.
The Butterfly Mural Project // Ian Stiles-Mikl
Together We Bloom // Isabel Halpern
ArtReach has been in action since 2008 with the mission to bring free visual arts education to San Diego’s public school students, and was a direct result of the drastic cuts to the state’s education budget, which eliminated virtually all arts classes. What a bleak picture is painted by schools without art. All children need and deserve the experience of creating something concrete from their abstract imaginings and visualizations of the world around them. Art has the power to transform a child’s world, inspire, spark creativity, encourage expressive outlets, build confidence, and mine new potential.
When ArtReach began, it served students in kindergarten through grade six, and now reaches kids from TK all the way through 12th grade. Since 2019, the Mural Program has allowed kids in the community to design 40 murals at schools, libraries, recreation centers, and other public places; the large collaborative works reflected their vision and transformed their space.
Each mural is celebrated with a gathering, dedication, and ribbon-cutting ceremony. These murals not only beautify a school or center, they also instill pride and a sense of belonging that lasts long after the project’s completion, a testimony to the power of collaborative creation. These public murals are on display all over the city; check out Art Crawl. ArtReach also shows its students’ creations at various ArtWalks throughout the county, including Little Italy, Liberty Station, and Carlsbad.
Ignite Creativity // Esteban Sánchez, Ian Stiles-Mikl, Isabel Halpern
In 2024, ArtReach opened its brand new 6,000 sq. ft. studio in the middle of Hillcrest and started a “creative wonderland” of community programs and neighborhood workshops that have reached more than 2,100 budding artists in its first year and became one of several recipients of a $5.2 million grant from the Prebys Foundation. The studio conducts a wide range of classes and summer camps and is the showcase for its mural titled “Ignite Creativity,” which was painted by 200 community members over three weeks and was dedicated last September. This joyful, colorful mural celebrates the vibrant history of Hillcrest and evokes the essence of ArtReach. Thank you, ArtReach, for enriching young minds and beautifying San Diego.
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