Early Wednesday morning, Fresno Mayor Jerry Dyer and a group of students from North Carolina Chapel Hill released a mural project in Calwa Park designed by muralist Cynthia Velazques.
City officials said they hope the artwork will ignite new murals to help beautify neighborhood parks.
“Part of my vision for Fresno is an inclusive, thriving beautiful city where people are proud of their neighborhood and community,” Dyer said. “One way to do that is through public art, and through cosmetology projects.”
In Calwa Park, near a sea of soccer fields, goalposts and colored trees, stands a small park bathroom painted in pastel blue that now depicts a young Latino wielding a soccer ball while surrounded by bluebird – a species native to Fresno.
The mural aims to represent the children of the Calwa community, Velazques said.
“I believe everyone loves beauty, everyone loves art, and we all see and appreciate beauty,” Velazques said. “Public art is for people, it’s not about myself or what I think but about how I represent the community and what they’re about.”
Who Leads the Project?
A group of freshman students from the Morehead-Cain Scholarship program at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill helped put the project together.
The students spent eight weeks in Fresno, working in partnership with Velazques and Dyer’s office to celebrate the community through public art and storytelling.
Elizah Van-Lokeren said she enjoyed working on the project with other students and Velazques.
“Working with Cynthia was like a dream, she was cooperative and kind, and gentle, and there were only good things to say about her.”
Van-Lokeren said the best thing about the project was learning about the community’s agricultural heritage, visiting the area’s national parks and watching families and children play soccer every night.
“I like to look at the mural of the boy juggling a soccer ball and then you look to your right and there are little boys juggling soccer balls and hanging out,” Van-Lokeren said. “A lot of kids are having fun, whether it’s a game or a tournament or they’re just with their dad playing soccer.”
Reflects the Latino Community
Initially, Van-Lokeren said many of the students felt inspired by Velazques, who immigrated from Mexico during his high school years and is now a community artist and educator for the Mennonite Central Community.
Velazques said they held several team meetings, developing a strategy and working together to bring the project to Calwa. She said the effort has helped her grow as an actress.
Velazques grew up in Guanajuato, Mexico – a city known for its colorful streets and art, and growing up there influenced his style.
“My town in México is a great source of inspiration, because it’s so colorful there, so vibrant, and it’s my main source of inspiration, and I think this colorful mural represents the community here very well,” he said. Velazques.
Muralist Cynthia Velazques is a community artist and educator working in the Mennonite Central Community. (GV Wire/Liz Juarez)
