Carlos unpacks how despite it being a hard year, confronting financial fears and the racism he has experienced, last year was his most successful year yet. Carlos encourages artists to walk towards their fear, no matter how they might feel. How to take responsibility for our welfare, not be dependent on politicians and those who don’t have our best interests at heart. This has been the year of truth, not so comfortable.Carlos shares with us the chakra system for clearing creative blocks and how he applies this process of removing blocks to his community mural-making process. “We will believe anything except in ourselves.”Website:https://www.carlosrodriguezart.com/Instagram: @carlosrmk

If These Walls Could Talk

Carlos Rodriguez

This passage that I meant for the book was accidentally left on the cutting room floor: Who gets pickedDeciphering which artists are chosen, which creative voices and perspectives are shared in a community is too frequently the result of an imperfect selection process. For example, street art festivals can gain city and building-owner approval for walls, but typically don’t have much in the way of budget to pay the artists. The art that gets made under those conditions is painted by whoever is willing to work for little to no payment, typically younger and less experienced artists who don’t have families to feed. Intentionally curating a diversity of voices is frequently overlooked in the artist’s selection process, especially on privately-funded public mural projects. One community I bid on a project for had brought ten large-scale murals to their downtown, all funded through private donations. However, nine out of the ten artists selected to paint the murals were either white or male, representing only a small segment of the diverse community. Private interest groups can be a boon to bringing artwork to communities, but ensuring the artist representation is well-rounded makes for more diverse perspectives and is vital to ensuring the artwork relevant to the broader community.

Who gets picked? And other controversial opinions...

You can find Mural Joe here:Homepage:www.muraljoe.comYouTube:https://www.youtube.com/user/muraljoeFacebook:https://www.facebook.com/muraljoeInstagram:https://www.instagram.com/muraljoe/

Mural Joe: YouTube's Favorite Mural Art Teacher

Back with a whole new season of fun, in this episode Morgan unpacks Chapter 5 from her new book, The Mural Artists Handbook, on why school murals hold so much potential as venues for creative mural art. She explains why she is so enthusiastic about school murals that she dedicated a whole chapter of the book to the subject. This podcast highlights the benefits of school murals and possible funding sources for school murals Visit www.MuralArtistsHandbook.com to find out more about Morgan’s new book!

The Untapped Potential of School Murals

Host: [Morgan Bricca][1] Links: [Web: www.Morganmurals.com][2] [Insta: morgan.mural.studios][3] [Blog www.morganmurals.com/blog][4] Episode Summary: I answer questions posed in an email from an artist in Portland, OR who wants to move towards mural painting. I wrap up this last episode in the season with a list of reasons why I love painting murals.

Morgan Bricca / Getting Started as a Mural Artist (Ep. 15)

Host: Morgan Bricca Guest: Alex Cook Links: Web: www.Morganmurals.com Insta: morgan.mural.studios Blog www.morganmurals.com/blog Alex's Website Alex's Video Episode Summary: Is it possible to be a rebel against street art culture? Alex Cook might be the first. His overtly loving messages and collaborative approach to his You Are Loved murals blur the edges between art and service, and bring a kind message into public spaces all over the globe.

Alex Cook / You Are Loved Murals (Ep. 14)

Host: Morgan Bricca Guest: Hanna Links: Web: www.Morganmurals.com Insta: morgan.mural.studios Blog www.morganmurals.com/blog Hanna's Murals: hannasmurals.com Hanna's Instagram: @hannasmurals Episode Summary: Hanna has been painting murals in the San Diego area for 15 years. We discuss the details of “the hustle” including pricing, materials, physical challenges, finding more clients, and taking time off to travel and recharge.

Hanna Daly/ Hanna's Murals (Ep. 13)

Host: Morgan Bricca Guest: Juan Carlos Araujo Links: Web: www.Morganmurals.com Insta: morgan.mural.studios Blog www.morganmurals.com/blog Juan Carlos Araujo: empiresevenstudios@yahoo.com https://www.empiresevenstudios.com/ Episode Summary: Juan Carlos Araujo brought Pow Wow mural festival to San Jose and has been a steady presence in the street art scene in San Jose since he founded E7S in 2008. We talk about diversity and inclusion, balancing making a living and being of service through art in the community, and the art of winning over mural skeptics.

Empire Seven Studios founder Juan Carlos Araujo (Ep. 12)

Host: Morgan Bricca Guest: Michael Ogilvie Links: Web: www.Morganmurals.com Insta: morgan.mural.studios Blog www.morganmurals.com/blog Michael Ogilvie, Public Art Director, City of San Jose michael.ogilvie@sanjoseca.gov San Jose Office of Cultural Affairs http://www.sanjoseca.gov/index.aspx?nid=4195 Episode Summary: Running the public art program for the tenth largest city in the united states is no easy task. Michael walks us through how public art projects happen in San Jose, as well as the vision for the public art program in one of the fastest growing cities in the country.

San Jose Director of Public Art Michael Ogilvie (Ep. 11)

Host: Morgan Bricca Guest: Jane Kim Links: Web: www.Morganmurals.com Insta: morgan.mural.studios Blog www.morganmurals.com/blog Episode Summary: Ink Dwell co-founder Jane Kim opens up about the challenges of running an art studio, taking on large mural commissions across the country, and nature education through art. Inkdwell.com Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/InkDwell/ Wall of Birds Book: https://www.inkdwell.com/wall-of-birds/ Learn more about the decline of the Western Monarch population and the conservation efforts surrounding it, at the Xerces Society.

Ink Dwell: Going big and finding partnership in the quest to cure "Nature Blindness" (Ep. 10)

Host: Morgan Bricca Guest: Jason Newblanc Links: Web: www.Morganmurals.com Insta: morgan.mural.studios Blog www.morganmurals.com/blog Episode Summary: Software engineer by day and arts advocate by night, Jason Newblanc brought inspiration from his annual pilgrimages to Burning man back to his hometown, Redwood City. His efforts were the beginning of the transformation of “Deadwood City” to Redwood City: The Arts Destination on the Peninsula. The Commercial Way Mural Alley in Redwood City, a series of seven murals that transformed a blighted alleyway, was his brainchild. He believes creativity is contagious and that good art “pushes the edges”. jasonnewblanc@rewoodcity.org

Creativity is Contagious: Bringing lessons from Burningman home to the suburbs (Ep. 9)

Host: Morgan Bricca Guest: Christy Flahavan Links: Web: www.Morganmurals.com Insta: morgan.mural.studios Blog www.morganmurals.com/blog Episode Summary: In this episode I interview Christy Flahavan, former PTA president of Springer Elementary School about how in the course of three years she transformed a boring, beige campus into a school bursting with art. She had a vision, and despite a retiring principal and lackluster support, started with one project and built on that success. My blog post about that transformation at Springer is here: https://www.morganmurals.com/blog/how-transform-school-for-less-15000

One success opens the doors for more: The transformation of Springer Elementary School (Ep. 8)

Host: Morgan Bricca Guest: Chris Beth Links: Redwood City Downtown Precise Plan (DTPP) Episode Summary: Chris Beth, Director of Parks and Recreation for the City of Redwood City, shares how his town went from a ghost town to the most vibrant arts destination on the peninsula, reviving the downtown businesses and community engagement and vibrancy.

City Art Success Story with Chris Beth (Ep. 7)

Host: Morgan Bricca Guest: Amanda Golden, Principal, Designing Local Links: Mark Regalman Article on art in alleyways (including Chattanooga's alley) Janet Eckleman TED talk Images of her piece in LeBauer Park in Greensboro, NC Episode Summary: In this episode Amanda Golden, Principal of Designing Local discusses the benefits of having a city master plan, including identifying various sources for funding the public art, having a plan that individuals or businesses can participate in, the pull of art dense communities, and the magic of site-specific, context-specific artwork.

The Benefit of a City Master Plan with Amanda Golden (Ep. 6)

Host: Morgan Bricca Guests: Paz de la Calzada - Website, Instagram Shannon Geis - Website, Instagram Episode Summary: Lunch break on the job site with artists Paz de la Calzada and Shannon Geis. We interview each other and cover money, the benefits of working with other artists, the challenges artist are facing in San Francisco and the benefits of painting over each other’s work.

Artist's Perspective with Paz de la Calzada and Shannon Geis (Ep. 5)

This podcast explores the process and best practices for creating successful mural projects. Each episode will be a half hour deep dive interview with art advocates, artists, art commissioners, public art planners, as well as field notes from past mural projects to both demystify the process as well celebrate the impact of a public space activated through art.

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If These Walls Could Talk

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