In the summer of 2019, I was selected by the Arts Foundation for Tucson and Southern Arizona to teach four high school students how to paint a mural. Our assignment from the Pima Association of Governments was to design and execute a large scale painting on the side of the Palo Verde swim complex. I coordinated classroom space with the University of Arizona’s Eller College and met with my students every morning for two months. Each student had different artistic abilities, and my goal was to bring everyone to the table to contribute something significant to the piece. I focused on building their understanding of the fundamentals of art and teaching how to translate our small-scale composition to a 20×7′ wall. I was given a budget of $30,000 to compensate me for my time and all the necessary teaching materials. Together, we successfully created a narrative mural that tells a story about the Palo Verde neighborhood.
Tucson Mural Class
