WTAMU MURAL SQUAD

The WT Mural Squad was started in 2015 to give art students hand-on experience with mural painting. Since then, we have painted over 15 murals all over the Texas panhandle and provided dozens of students with scholarships and travel opportunities. We have developed a funding instrument called the BIG ART Fund at the university that funds these projects through internal grants, the art program budget and fundraising. The WT Mural Squad received a Showcase-in-a Showcase grant from the Sybil B. Harrington College of Fine Art and Humanities to paint a mural in the Panhandle. The only caveat is that we have to work with local high school students, which is the something we enjoy doing. These projects fuse art and education and represent our mission to simultaneously beautify and benefit the greater Panhandle community.

The Mural Squad also has a lot of equipment for mural painting which keeps the cost low and often incentivizes students through scholarships or employment. These experiences are invaluable to young artists because it teaches them professional skills while compensating them for their time. This validates their development and is invaluable to their education. Many of our students are low income and are from diverse populations. Being able to earn funds doing what they are learning in school releases some of the pressure of modern life and allows them to focus on their career paths.

We are lucky to have found a partnership with the Contemporary Art Museum in Panhandle. The creative freedom they have given us is critical to making a dynamic design that will become a landmark. We are planning mural designed by Jon Revett, WT Art Program Director and Associate Professor of Painting and Drawing, and also the founder of the Mural Squad. Revett’s work relies on geometrical abstraction, and use repeating forms called tessellations to create optically stimulating pattern fields. This mural synthesizes mathematics of design and color theory, and the students who work on these projects learn practical applications of both concepts. We plan to execute the mural on CAMP over Spring Break 2021

Juvenile Justice Murals

In the spring and summer of 2018 CAMP sponsored two murals in collaboration with the Juvenile Justice System of Hale County Texas. Over 20 students participated in the murals. One was inside the JJ facility and the other was created on the Gebo's building behind the musuem.

SEED | The first mural

2018 was the first mural created for CAMP's East End Mural Project. Plans are to do one a year. This one is called "Seed" and is created by local artist Rigo Rey. Every week it brings in tourist to take selfies, graduation pictures, dance promotions etc.

On Board: JJAEP&Coronado

In the spring of 2018, artists on CAMP's team spent six weeks working with the kids in Hale County's Juvenile Justice Education Program and the Middle School Students at Coronado High School. We collaborated with the students with the help of their instructors Rigo and JoAnn Rey. During those six weeks students painted over 50...

CAMP Kids

In the summer of 2018 CAMP held art classes for kids ages 6 through 12. Classes were offered on a sliding scale basis according to need. At the end of each class there were Pop Up exhibits of all the work the students created. Parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles and friends came in to enjoy the...

Fiesta

In the Fall of 2019 CAMP produced an afternoon and evening long festival that included three dance groups and several musical performances by local bands. There was food and drinks and all kinds of vendors including the youth entrepreneurs group.

2nd Saturdays

Each month on the second Saturday CAMP host a community evening event. We have done a painting party called, Jackson Potluck, a beard contest, a chili cookoff, hired local and regional bands, did Halloween and always had lots of food and music.