Red Can 2020 Mural
The mural unveiling is the final piece to the main event. Following is the talking circle where all the artists come together and speak on their art, their imagery, and how the topic points influenced their piece. Read more about the painting I did in my previous post here. Below I'll talk about the mural painting process, show some progress shots, and link the final talking circle. It was just an immense honor to be a part of the whole event. Red Can usually happens in Eagle Butte, South Dakota but because of COVID, CRYP had to think quick and find a way to connect their youth with their programming with the artists they selected. This led to the first ever Red Can virtual graffiti event. Making this happen virtually is a testament on how humans can persevere to make meaningful connections with each other.
Let me first start off by referencing the original painting for this mural below. There area elements I wanted to revisit and rearrange to suit the new canvas and the new medium. Working in spray paint and larger is always a challenge and aesthetically it has definitely a different feeling.
Donations support future Red Can events and CRYP.
I wanted to shout out my beloved Urban Artworks and Paul for helping me look for a space for the mural. We found one but the wall ended up being too big to accomplish painting in the small timeline I had to paint. I'm still working pretty full time juggling family, life, art, and work so managing it all can get challenging. I had to be realistic as to what I could complete as we were showing off the final pieces Saturday evening live. The new wall came complements of another organization I really adore Overall Creative. Kathleen was so ready to help and ended up having a perfect location with a wheat paste installation next to the site with a similar message.
Similar to how I paint canvases, I first start out by blocking in colors and shapes to fill up the space. It helps to paint the wall one solid color too. This allows for a clean slate to build up from. In this case I was a little too short as was my ladder to reach the top. Finding where things go and placement is worked out in this phase. Also the base colors which I will then build on by layers is also established. Movement and shape is also structured here. I build off this skeleton as I layer in colors and patterns.
One thing I always like to share is how I keep my workspace. As you can see I always arrange my cans by color so my brain stays organized and keeps a mental inventory of the colors I have. Keeping a clean and orderly workspace is essential for me, I can't work in chaos. But you'll find each artist has a method that works best for themselves.
https://lakotayouth.org/2020/09/online-gallery-of-redcan-2020-murals/
Aside from the painting of the murals and canvases for the prints we also took part in talking circles and panels discussing our art and mission as artists and how it ties to Red Can 2020. It was immensely educational learning from my fellow artists, some of whom I've looked up to all my art life. You can revisit any of the panels we did on CRYP YouTube channel.
In closing I am super grateful of the experience and for being able to share my art, Seattle, and passion with the CRYP community. I am looking forward to next year.
- Angelina Villalobos Soto