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November 15 – December 19, 2019

Opening Reception
Friday, November 15, 5-7PM

The Art Base, Basalt High School and muralist, Valerie Rose, are honored to work with this group of 15 students who have recently come to Basalt from El Salvador. The students, who range in age from 14 – 18 years old, arrived in the United States in the last few months and are just beginning to learn English and acclimate to life in Colorado. This is their first art class ever! 

The goal of the annual program is to give students a sense of belonging and community pride in a new place, through the creation of public art, while celebrating the roots of their hometowns through personal reflection and artistic expression. Students explore the meaning of home, remember where they come from and learn that home can be created wherever they go. Throughout the program, students are writing and sharing their stories of their homes growing up, their childhood memories, their journeys here, as well as what makes them feel at home in Basalt. Colors play an important role in this project. Students create self-portraits representing their past, present, and future selves with colors signifying specific meaning and emotion. The colors used in their self-portraits are replicated in murals on newspaper racks, tying together personal and public art projects. The finished newspaper racks, generously donated by The Aspen Times, will be seen throughout Basalt and El Jebel for years to come. 

The students participating in this project are enrolled in the English Language Development program at Basalt High School taught by Leticia Guzman Ingram, 2016 Colorado Teacher of the Year. 

This exhibition is generously sponsored by JD Black Construction and the Basalt Education Foundation.