Buckets of paint in every color imaginable surrounded Kenzo Revilla and volunteers. Every brush stroke made the expansive design a reality in the hopeful halls of Widén Elementary School.
Human biology junior Kenzo Revilla started the Street Art Muralist Organization (SAMO) in the fall of 2022 with the goal of appreciating murals and finding like-minded individuals. This year, a UT organization named The Collective recruited SAMO to paint one of four murals at Widén Elementary School for The Project, UT’s biggest annual day of service. Master of social work sophomore Christina Ciaburri, who is independent of SAMO, designed the other three murals. Every year, The Collective chooses a community to serve; this year, it chose Dove Springs. Widén Elementary was one of 10 sites around Dove Springs for The Project.
“I’m hoping this mural can provide a sense of inspiration for the kids that attend the school,” Revilla said.
The mural, which sits inside one of the school’s long hallways, extends 40 feet wide and seven feet tall — although it was originally planned to be just 10 feet wide. In order to cover such a large portion of the hallway, Revilla added the UT Tower and the Texas State Capitol.
“It’s been a lot of planning, a lot of struggle with trying to get here, and a lot of communication on everyone’s part,” Revilla said. “It’s been really stressful trying to create a design that will make everyone happy and that will fit with the elementary school.”
Environmental science sophomore Krithika Rajesh served as one of the team leads, directing volunteers and organizing the site.
“It turned out wonderful,” said Rajesh, culture and membership committee chair of The Collective. “It was rocky to get there because there’s a lot of setup, but then the volunteers were there and it was great.”
The volunteer effort consisted of three four-hour shifts. Sibel Yaser, environmental engineering senior and volunteer, said she completed the last touches on the mural and watched the final design come together.
“We wanted (the mural) to showcase the diversity of the students and the community, so we had depictions of people from all different backgrounds,” Yaser said. “We had quotes from Martin Luther King, Jr., and then César Chávez as well. Celebrating the diversity in the community and being able to see that is really nice as a kid.”
Yaser said volunteers offered all levels of experience, and their work impressed her.
“It’s a form of art that you can share with so many people,” Revilla said. “Every day people will walk by it and look at it. It’s really rewarding.”
Editor’s Note: The story and photo caption previously failed to include details regarding who designed the mural. The Texan regrets this error.
