I was contracted by RACC (Regional Arts and Culture Council) to repaint this mural originally painted in 1998 by Adriene Cruz. This mural, which was originally funded through Multnomah county’s percent for art program, was one of the first murals I saw getting painted when I moved to Portland. I was fresh out of art school, and had just started painting murals at the time. Seeing it helped me realize that maybe, someday, I could do public art too. It was the first time I had heard of RACC, and that you could get grants through them. It was then that I started going to their public art workshops and educating myself about the process.

It was an honor to be trusted to restore this piece of Portland’s public art history, and it feels personally special to me as well.