New mural touts summer camp theme
As it prepares for a new season of summer camps and other special programs, the Hamilton County Youth Center decorated its exterior wall with a new mural on May 24. The mural painted by Colorado artist John Van Horn was mounted on a wall to the left of the center’s main entrance on 12th Street.
Youth Center Executive Director Paul Johnson said the idea for the mural sparked when the southeast corner wall of the building was being renovated.
“It used to be like a brown wall that was all just deteriorating and falling apart,” Johnson said. “So we applied for a grant through the Farr Foundation, and we were able to fix that spot where the wall just didn’t look very good... It’s actually going to be a location for a rotating mural project.”
The plan is for a new mural to go up at the beginning of each summer, with the design reflecting the theme of that summer’s camps.
“We have a new summer theme every year,” Johnson said. “It was ‘Be excellent to each other’ the first year, ‘Do good recklessly’ the second year and this year is ‘Be more kind.’”
“I’ve been doing art since I was probably 18,” Van Horn shared.
While Van Horn has been living in Denver, for over a decade, he said he takes on projects across the country.
“There’s a lot in Colorado going on in Denver with the arts and stuff,” he commented. “There is a lot of competition so I apply for stuff everywhere.”
Johnson met and formed a friendship with Van Horn through a shared passion for mopeds.
“There’s a moped club that I’m a part of here in Nebraska,” Johnson explained. “I saw his art on Instagram and I met with some of his friends in Denver whenever I was in town and I just loved his art style. So I reached out to him about creating something for our club.”
The creation of the final design began in March with Van Horn trying out different drawings of huskies in his sketchbook before landing on the final design which highlights this year’s theme and features the mascot of Aurora Public Schools.
“In a sketchbook I drew bunch of dogs, kind of trying to draw huskies and then I brought this one I liked into ‘Procreate’ on the iPad,” he explained. “I did this one on the iPad with the little pin to pin, refined it and sent (Johnson) sketches and stuff. We collaborated on how we wanted it to be color-wise and everything he wanted more colorful.”
Unlike previous murals that Van Horn created by spray-painting on exterior walls, this one was painted by hand inside the youth center on a large piece of metal canvas which was then bolted onto the freshly repaired wall.
“Usually for murals, I will just spray paint outside, because a lot of times they’re a lot bigger,” he said. “Usually I’ll spray paint on metal, like if there’s a metal building or corrugated stuff.”
Van Horn went on to discuss the challenges of bringing the heart-eyed blue husky to life.
“I just got a primer that’s meant for metal because otherwise it’s really slick,” Van Horn said. “I just rolled that on first and it kind of creates a little bit of a texture that they can kind of grip to. It’s not too bad. It’s a little different, I usually don’t brush paint this scale.”
As he made the final touch ups to his project, Van Horn stated he felt good about how it had turned out and the progress he had made during his four days in Aurora.
“I’m pretty happy with it,” he commented. “Some of these paints are a little more transparent than I would have liked, so I have to do a ton of coats. That slows me down but other than that, I’m having fun and I feel good about it.”
Johnson said he and the Hamilton County Youth Center board were also pleased with the mural.
“I have sent some pictures to some board members and they’re all really excited to see it,” Johnson shared. “Some of the changes we made, like just some color changes and whatnot, were all processed through the board.”
The mural design is also available on t-shirts and stickers. T-shirts are available for purchase on the youth center’s website and the stickers will be free for visitors at the youth center.
“We’ve had the image itself for about a month or a month and a half,” Johnson said. “I think now we’ve got t-shirts ordered for the staff and I’ve got 200 stickers made of that image.”
After completing the mural, Van Horn commented on his future projects.
“I have like a few mural things I’ve applied for,” he commented. “There’s supposed to be a mural festival in Seattle I might go to at end of August.”
Having found more work in Nebraska with artists in Omaha, Van Horn said he will be returning to Nebraska to work on other projects, which may include a new outdoor mural by the center’s basketball court.
“We have an outdoor mural that’s in the planning stages and ‘repairing the wall’ stages,” Johnson said. “Ed (and) Sharon (Manhart) and I’m sure John will be back to help with that one, too, whenever that gets off. I’m hoping next year, but that depends on funding.”
Johnson expressed his gratitude to the Farr Foundation for providing the grant that made the mural possible.
Summer schedule
Ten youth camps will be offered by the youth center this summer and are free for students throughout Hamilton County. The camps include:
*Archery at the Hamilton County Fairgrounds, 6-7 p.m., Wednesdays, May 29-June 19;
*RC Cars & Drones at the Hamilton County Fairgrounds, 10-11 a.m., Saturdays, June 1-29;
*3D Printer Club at the youth center, 6-7:30 p.m. Mondays, June 3-17;
*Impact Art Class at the youth center, 1-2:30 p.m., Saturday, June 8;
*A’ROR’N Days Street Dance at the youth center, 7-10 p.m., Thursday, June 20;
*A’ROR’N Days Dodgeball Game at Bremer Center, Friday, June 21;
*Videography at the youth center, 6:30-7:30 p.m., Mondays, July 1-Aug. 7;
*Disc Golf at Streeter Park, 10-11 a.m., Fridays, July 1-27;
*Video Game Tournament at the youth center, 6:30-7:30 p.m., Wednesdays, July 10-31;
*Axe Throwing at Hamilton County Fairgrounds, 3-4 p.m., Saturday, July 13.
Participants can register for camps through the youth center’s Facebook page. Those interested in volunteering at the center or at one of the summer camps can apply at hcyouthcenter.com/volunteer.