AKG Public Art Initiative partners with BCAT for mural at new location

Buffalo AKG Art Museum press release

On Thursday, Buffalo AKG Public Art Initiative celebrated the production of a student-led mural at the Buffalo Center for Arts and Technology (BCAT) on the east and west walls of its new home at 368 Sycamore St. The two-part mural, titled “Let’s See Dreams,” was recently completed by a team of 19 BCAT students.

With BCAT’s relocation to Buffalo’s East Side, the organization dramatically improved and expanded its capacity to serve and educate students in a wide variety of media. The arts center provides accessible pathways to meaningful work through high-quality learning and development, individualized support, and a dignified community environment – meeting students wherever they are in their journeys toward the future they envision.

Located on Sycamore Street between the main thoroughfares of Jefferson and Michigan avenues, the site will now stand out with a design reflective of the creative culture that flourishes at BCAT.

New York State Sen. April N.M. Baskin said, “Congratulations to the talented BCAT students whose creativity and hard work brought ‘Let's See Dreams’ to life, along with the educators, mentors and local artists who supported them every step of the way. Public art reflects the heart and spirit of a community, and this vibrant mural is a welcoming landmark on Buffalo's East Side, celebrating the creativity of our young people and the power of arts education.”

Erie County Legislator Lawrence Dupre said, "Public art has the power to transform neighborhoods, inspire pride, and bring people together. The Buffalo AKG's Public Art Initiative ensures that world-class art is not confined to museum walls but becomes part of our everyday lives and accessible to everyone. I applaud the Buffalo AKG for its commitment to making art a resource for all residents and visitors alike."

BCAT Youth Program Manager Kevin Kline said, " ‘Let's See Dreams’ is a reflection of what can happen when young people build something together. Every shape, color and composition carries the voice of many students, creating a vibrant welcome for everyone who enters BCAT to create, connect, and build new pathways for themselves and their community. What impressed me most throughout this project was watching students learn to let go of ownership over individual ideas in service of something larger, discovering that collaboration doesn't diminish creativity, it expands it."

The process started with conversations between BCAT and the AKG about how best to bring more attention to the critical support and education that BCAT provides. BCAT students, led by instructors Kevin Kline and Sarah Nemec, offered an initial treatment based off existing student work that immediately captured the imagination of the AKG public art staff.

From those early concepts, students spent months refining and addressing the architectural complexities of the building, the spirit of the overall programming provided at BCAT, and the methods of visual communication desired to bring more attention to the arts center. BCAT instructors guided students through the studio and mural production processes from initial concepts, reading and understanding building schematics to scale designs, through exhibiting prints of their digital mock-ups.

The AKG selected a dedicated mural team of Buffalo-based artists including Emeka Wajed, Naija Boles and Danielle Saeva, who attended classes weekly, drawing upon their mural production experience and helping guide students through visual considerations to improve upon their designs. This team, along with additional support from local artists Karle Norman, Laura Valkwitch and Bree Gilliam, will be responsible for the design transfer to the building and will facilitate the physical painting production under guidance from the AKG.

By embedding a team of local artists, this collaboration is engaging and supporting BCAT students exploring livelihoods and careers in the creative economy while building the important connections within the creative community in Buffalo to sustain this kind of work long-term.

The final result is a bold, multicolored collage of shapes, symbols and messages cooperatively generated and arranged by BCAT students.

The work will be impossible to miss from either travel direction on Sycamore. From the Jefferson side, the approach will guide visitors to the Mortimer Street parking lot and public entrance to the art center. From the Michigan side, the gigantic and visually striking west wall of the building will demand attention and assert the site as a critical location of creative production.

BCAT students on the project include: Mya Mitchell, Kevine Bampala, Estelle Hernandez-Healy, Ethan Jaszka, Madi Wolfson, Jester Gerenday, KC Carter, Heilly Feliciano, Christela Bampala, Ariel Baker-Ellis, Leah Roache, Lillyan Goines, Brenardo Powell, Kiarelis Rivera, Luciano Ramos, Apollo Johnson, Christian Edmonds, Amaya Saxon and Jayla Peay.

More about the Buffalo AKG Art Museum: Founded in 1862, the Buffalo AKG Art Museum is the sixth-oldest public art institution in the U.S. For more than 160 years, the Buffalo AKG has collected, conserved and exhibited the art of its time, often working directly with living artists. This tradition has given rise to one of the world’s most extraordinary collections of modern and contemporary art.

In June 2023, following the completion of the most significant campus development and expansion project in its history, the Buffalo AKG opened anew to the public. The project was funded by a $230 million capital campaign, the largest such campaign for a cultural institution in the history of Western New York, including $195 million raised for construction and $35 million in additional operating endowment funds.

This mural project is supported by Rachel & Scott Stenclik and Erie County Legislator Lawrence J. Dupre. The Public Art Initiative was established and is supported by leadership funding from the County of Erie and the City of Buffalo.