Waco TribThe group worked with four local artists on the design, featuring an image of an origami crane, during the first weeks of the new ArtPrenticeship program. Creative Waco, Prosper Waco and Waco ISD created the program to bring students together with art professionals, local businesses and other organizations to make something beautiful downtown.
The program offers practical work experience for creative young people, ArtPrenticeship project manager Stefanie Wheat-Johnson said. The students are collaborating on every part of the design, management and creation of a mural that will turn the side of a building into a public gallery. The program started June 4 and will run until July 31. The team is preparing for a July 25 start date for the mural at 315 University Parks Drive, a property next to Bicycle World that is owned by Turner Behringer Development.
Local artists Megan Major, Sean Oswald, Will Suarez and Cade Kegerreis joined in working with the youth. The fact they volunteered their time to help is really cool, University High School student Savana Salazar said.
“I’m learning techniques for art and how to take new ideas and criticism too and how to change my art and make it better,” Salazar said. “I love art, and art’s really a good outlet for me so I always try and express everything through my art.”
Joseph Wlazlinski, another University student, said he does not plan to pursue a career directly related to art, but the skills he is learning in the program will be an asset as he works to improve his ability to collaborate.
“As an engineer, you need to work with people a lot and you need to be good at communicating ideas and building them,” Wlazlinski said. “This is one of the greatest places I can think of to do that. You’re communicating ideas in their purest form. I have grown a lot in the past two weeks that I’ve been here. I’ve gotten better at communicating those ideas.”
Creative Waco Director Fiona Bond said ArtPrenticeship organizers are working to line up businesses, other organizations or individuals for $600 sponsorships that will allow them to pay individual students a meaningful wage for their work in the program.
“Sponsorships will connect each intern directly to a person or a business who cares about their success,” Bond said. “This helps the kids know that someone values their distinct contribution and it also makes them individually accountable to their sponsor.”
Oswald said he had been in Cincinnati and has lived in the area less than two years. He has been impressed with the business-friendly culture in Waco.
“When we came here the climate for business is so favorable so I opened my art as a business,” Oswald said. “It’s like it’s in the water. People are like, ‘Yeah, start a business.’ In Cincinnati, it’s just not like that. You want to start a business, it costs a lot more just generally as a barrier thing. There isn’t this pro-business mentality. There is this stigma around business as a concept.
“The people that I meet are like, ‘Oh I started Luna Juice Bar, or I started this or I’m buying this building and I’m starting this business and oh I have this business’ and I’m like, what? And people are like, ‘Just do something.’ And I thought, this is awesome. I love this.”
ArtPrenticeship is already supported by Baylor Philanthropy, Cooper Foundation, Magnolia Foundation, Waco Public Improvement District, Mitchell Construction, Turner Behringer Development, Terry and Elaine Stevens, 1519 LLC and Langerman Foster Engineering.
Bond said the program is modeled from the Cincinnati ArtWorks program.