Emerson St. Mural

Emerson St. Mural

About Emerson St.

WellPower's Emerson St. for Teens and Young Adults serves youth ages 15 to 26 in Denver and the surrounding community who are experiencing mental health challenges. Before our program began, we often found that youth dropped out of services after childhood and only returned as adults, missing out on crucial supports during this formative time.

Emerson St. was founded to address this gap in services and to support youths’ transition to adulthood. Our mission is to offer holistic care that is tailored to and appealing for teens and young adults. We support youth in meeting their goals for improved well-being through a comprehensive range of services including individual, family and group therapy; case management; psychiatry; supported education and employment; and well-being classes both on- and off-site. We help youth to build confidence and autonomy, to explore activities that foster meaning and purpose and to build positive relationships.

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The Mural Project

Emerson St. is housed in an old Victorian mansion in the Capitol Hill neighborhood; our building has always been a point of pride and another indication for the youth we serve that we are not a “typical” mental health clinic. Our space is colorful and unconventional, and we hope it helps people feel welcome.

We are commissioning an indoor mural for the waiting area of our building. Our goal is to visually represent and celebrate the diverse identities of youth we serve, as well as illustrate our commitment to diversity, equity and inclusiveness.  We will select the final mural design with input from Emerson St. youth to ensure that their voices and perspectives are reflected in the artwork.

WellPower is committed to anti-racism, ending discrimination and bias and ensuring equity for all. We know that artists of color are underrepresented in galleries and museums and may have fewer opportunities to showcase their work. Therefore, we are committed to hiring and showcasing an artist of color who lives in the Denver or surrounding community for this mural project. The artist will be asked to create a concept statement to be displayed near the mural. The finished mural will be unveiled at our annual Community Jam event in mid-September of 2023 (exact date TBD).

The Space

The mural will be located in the main stairwell of the Emerson St. building, directly across from the front door, and visible from the main lobby/waiting area. The size of the mural space is approximately 54 square feet. The artwork will be painted on removable aluminum composite panels so that it can be moved, if Emerson St. for Teens and Young Adults ever moves to a new building/space in the future. 

The mural will be installed on the wall shown above
The mural will be installed on the wall shown above

Compensation

Funding for this mural is provided by a generous grant from the City and County of Denver, through Denver Arts and Venues, as an initiative of their Urban Arts Fund Program. To learn more, check out their website at: https://denverpublicart.org/murals/urban-arts-fund-engage/

The artist will receive $1620, which is a commission of $30 per square foot (commission includes the cost of art-making materials (aluminum composite panels provided by Emerson St.), which will be provided by the artist).

Timeline

  • April 30, 2023 - Application Deadline
  • May and June, 2023 - Selection Process - Review applications, complete interviews and announce artist selection by June 17, 2023
  • July and August, 2023 - Artist will work on the mural
  • September 1, 2023 - Mural completion deadline; Artwork to be installed at Emerson St. in the first weeks of September
  • Mid-September, 2023 - Mural unveiling at Community Jam 2023 Event, Day TBD

The Nitty Gritty

Artist's Responsibilities

  • Provide own art-making materials (i.e. paint, brushes, etc.). Artist may not use latex for the mural.
  • Provide own space to work on the artwork; piece must be completed by September 1, 2023. 

Emerson St.'s Responsibilities

  • Emerson St. staff to determine the final size and shape of the aluminum panels on which the artwork will be painted. 
  • Provide aluminum composite panels for artwork to be completed on. 

Application Process

Eligibility to Apply

  • We are seeking a professional artist who:
    • identifies as a person of color,
    • lives in the Denver Metro Area, and
    • has experience with creating murals or other large-scale artwork.

Selection Process

  • Step 1: Submit application by April 30, 2023
  • Step 2: Emerson St. staff and youth will review applications and outreach top candidates
  • Step 3: Interviews with top candidates
  • Step 4: Final artist selection by June 17, 2023

Artist Application

Applications are closed. We will be reviewing applications starting in May, with final selection by June 17, 2023. If you have any questions or would like to reach us to discuss this opportunity further, please contact Sarah.Shipman@wellpower.org.