Street Wise Arts and Town of Superior Announce Inaugural Superior Mural Festival, Coming October 2026

Street Wise Arts and the Town of Superior will co-produce the Superior Mural Festival, celebrating the Town’s growing community through public art installations and events on October 4, 2026. Street Wise Arts has produced seven successful mural festivals and installed more than 170 murals in Boulder County. This partnership with the Town of Superior creates a new and impactful mural festival uniquely designed for the Superior community. 

“Superior’s vibrant community and active public spaces represent everything we look for in a partner,” says Leah Brenner Clack, Founder and Executive Director of Street Wise Arts. “We look forward to working alongside the Town to celebrate its unique character through world-class public art that neighbors can enjoy for years to come.”

The Superior Mural Festival presented by Street Wise Arts aims to activate the Town of Superior’s public spaces, foster community pride, and support local artists. Street Wise Arts collaborated with Superior’s Cultural Arts and Public Spaces Advisory Committee (CAPS) to select a variety of walls for the festival. The walls vary in size from small to large, which will contribute to a robust and impactful first year mural festival and provide opportunities for artists from a variety of career stages. 

The Town and CAPS selected a theme of nature and regrowth, encouraging artists to consider contemporary, unique, and creative approaches to the theme within their mural designs. The theme celebrates the Town’s unparalleled connections with nature through its 630 acres of parks, green space, and open space and 35 miles of trails. Additionally, it offers opportunities for reflection as the Town continues to expand and define its cultural identity. 

“Downtown Superior is evolving, and this is exactly the kind of energy we want to build—creative, public, and something people can be part of,” says Mark Lacis, Mayor of the Town of Superior. The Superior Mural Festival presented by Street Wise Arts will headquarter itself at the Superior Civic Space, located in the heart of Downtown Superior and surrounded by the festival walls. 

In addition to the live mural installation, the festival will offer free public programming, including an exhibition of artworks by the artist lineup, artist panel discussion, mural walking tours, and art education workshops. These programs offer community members the ability to connect with and get to know their neighbors as well as the local artists creating murals during the festival. The Superior Mural Festival will take place in conjunction with the annual Fall Festival, which brings a variety of vendors and live music to Downtown Superior.

"Superior residents have been asking for more murals in town,” says Andrew Vaughan, chair of CAPS. “The 2026 Superior Mural Festival is the beginning of a beautiful tradition of answering that call."

The call for artists opens May 1-31. Street Wise Arts will work with the Town of Superior to review applications and invite a diverse group of local artists to participate in the festival.

Visit superiormuralfestival.com for more information, ways to get involved, and to sponsor or donate to the Superior Mural Festival. 

Street Wise Arts, PLAY Boulder Foundation, and Boulder Housing Partners Announce New Partnership to Create Accessible Art Opportunities for Local Youth

On weekday afternoons at Tantra Lake Apartments; a Boulder Housing Partners (BHP) community, a group of local youth are trading screens and idle time for paint, paper, and a shared creative environment.

Through a new partnership between Street Wise Arts, PLAY Boulder Foundation, and Boulder Housing Partners, teaching artists will lead a six-week after-school art enrichment program designed for young BHP residents who have limited access to creative programming outside of school. The program responds to a growing desire among families for high-quality arts opportunities that are accessible where youth already live and provide creative connections for children to engage with their communities, neighbors, and peers.

Rather than functioning as a traditional art class, the program centers creativity as a tool for belonging, self-expression, and confidence-building. Street Wise Arts selected local artist Jeresneyka Rose, known as Rizzo, to guide youth through collaborative and individual projects and to create a supportive environment where participants can explore their identities, connect with peers, and experience the value of making art together. “I am passionate about curating spaces where people feel safe and comfortable to create freely,” states Rizzo. “I am excited to provide a high-quality art experience where youth can discover and explore more about themselves, each other and the world through intentional workshops that center storytelling through art.”

For Street Wise Arts and PLAY Boulder Foundation, the partnership reflects a shared belief that art should not be a privilege or an extracurricular luxury, but a community resource, especially for young people navigating systemic barriers to access. The program launched in late January and culminates in a community sharing moment for families and neighbors at Tantra Lake Apartments, highlighting not only the students’ finished artwork, but the relationships and confidence built along the way. “This is a beautiful opportunity for BHP families throughout our properties to have access to enrichment within their neighborhoods and cultivate deeper and more creative relationships with their neighbors. Children and families deserve communities that promote learning, belonging and joy,” says Jamillah Richmond, Resident Services Coordinator of Tantra Lake. 

This program was supported by funding from PLAY Boulder Foundation’s PLAYpass program, which partners with community organizations to connect youth with accessible recreational and arts related opportunities. Boulder Housing Partners and Street Wise Arts were excited to collaborate to bring arts-based programming directly into Tantra Lake. “When community partners come together with a shared vision, more meaningful access becomes possible,” says Greta Sandberg, Access Manager at PLAY Boulder Foundation. “This pilot program allows PLAYpass to expand beyond recreation and into the arts, creating more welcoming and culturally responsive spaces where youth can build confidence, express themselves, and feel a true sense of belonging within their own community. I couldn’t be more excited about this partnership and the opportunity it creates for our youth.” 

“For more than a decade, Street Wise Arts has partnered with Boulder Housing Partners on community-informed mural projects, and we are deeply excited to expand that collaboration by bringing art education programs directly to residents,” says Leah Brenner Clack, Founder and Executive Director of Street Wise Arts. “Tantra Lake holds a special place in my heart—I once called it home—and it’s especially meaningful to continue to be a part of the community here.”

This initial art enrichment program serves as a pilot program. Street Wise Arts, PLAY Boulder, and Boulder Housing Partners hope to expand by bringing more arts education programming to other BHP communities. 

2025 In Review

Dear Friends of Street Wise Arts,

As we reflect on 2025, we give gratitude to our supporters, artist community, school partners, volunteers, donors, and sponsors. We are thankful for the community that finds value and joy in public art and arts education.

This past year, Street Wise Arts expanded our impact by installing sixteen new murals for the public to enjoy, engaging nearly 2000 students in arts education programs and 240 people in mural tour programs, and supporting 45 local artists in creative projects with us. Our continued success reinforces the belief that investing in art has both immediate and long-term community impact and results in resilient communities.

Continuing Growth in Arts Education

A mural program led by artist Aerica Raven at Lafayette Elementary School.

Street Wise Arts continues to grow our capacity to serve Colorado students through our diverse arts education models. In 2025, we are proud to report that we delivered nine mural programs through in-school artist residencies, six week-long art summer camps, five after-school art programs, and seven artist lectures or engagement events with students supporting mural programming. Our education programs reached over 1950 students, 15% more than in 2024. We served six new schools and thirteen total schools with art programs. Our education programs also hired 28 local professional teaching artists.  

Celebrating Seven Years of Street Wise Mural Festival

A mural-in-progress by artist Jorge Cuartas during the 2025 Street Wise Mural Festival. Photo by Peter Fitzgerald.

Street Wise Arts is overjoyed following the success of the seventh annual Street Wise Mural Festival, which installed eleven new public art murals across the City of Boulder by local and international artists in celebration of Joy as Resistance.

The festival took place September 26 and 27 in Downtown and North Boulder, with murals now enlivening the community thanks to ten generous wall partners: Shining Mountain Waldorf School, KGNU Community Radio, Museum of Boulder, People’s Productions, OZO Coffee, RIOS, Tebo Properties, First United Methodist Church, and two private residences.

This year saw a great number of attendees and volunteers joining to support the festival and participate in near capacity events, including mural tours, an artist panel, and a hands-on artist workshop. The 2025 festival theme of Joy as Resistance invited artists to explore how joy can serve as a powerful form of resilience and collective healing. While active resistance and social justice remain central to Street Wise’s mission, this year’s festival serves as a reminder that embracing joy is a radical way to imagine a brighter future and to unite our communities.

Investing in Artists and Equity

Artist and mentor Aerica Raven and mentee Natalia Vinueza during the 2025 Street Wise Mural Festival. Photo by Aerica Raven.

Street Wise Arts continues to raise the bar in its commitment to artist support and diversity. Diversity remains central to our approach, with 80% of participating artists identifying as women, artists of color, or LGBTQIA+. This year's festival also supported three emerging artists through its mentorship program, offering hands-on experience and professional guidance.

Partner Programs with Big Impact

A mural-in-progress by artist Kate Fitzpatrick for Boulder County Recycling Center. Photo by Jeff Goldberg.

Street Wise Arts partnered with five organizations this year to create seven new mural projects that built community, celebrated partner legacies, and deepened learning. Our partners include organizations that make a big impact themselves: Boulder Housing Partners, Boulder County Recycling Center, Pepper's Senior Dog Sanctuary, Boulder Library Foundation and Boulder Parks and Recreation. Through these seven partner mural programs, Street Wise Arts deepened the impact of each partner's mission, and provided paid opportunities for professional Colorado artists. 

Building Community Through Mural Tours

A mural walking tour group. Photo by Nyasha James-Davis.

In 2025, Street Wise Arts engaged 240 attendees across 24 mural tour offerings. We added monthly bike tours to our mural tour program, which also includes monthly walking tours, special Street Wise Mural Festival tours, and private tours. Our guided tours bring together locals and visitors to tell the stories behind featured murals and the artists who create them, educating the public about our organization’s mission and street art culture in the process. Street Wise Arts mural tours are key to building community connections and cultivating our audience.

Our year-end fundraising campaign continues with a goal of raising $30,000 to support 2026 programming! Street Wise Arts aims to bring joy and build community through public art, arts education, and mural tours in service of Colorado residents, artists, and students of all ages.⁠ Please consider contributing to our year-end campaign. Your donation will bring more public art and free arts education programs to the Front Range.

With gratitude,

Leah Brenner Clack, Executive Director

Allison Greene, Program Manager

Allyson Burbeck, Program Manager