Colors of the Community
At Trees, Water & People (TWP) we acknowledge that our office sits on indigenous land and that our local community in Fort Collins, Colorado, is enriched by this history and the diversity of its peoples.
This year we want to honor that diversity and shed light on the root issues that force people to move across international borders and leave their homes behind. Climate change is a major driver of migration out of Mesoamerica and Indian Country. Shifting temperatures and rain patterns result in these regions losing their ability to produce enough food.
We have entrusted artist Armando Silva with the task of capturing stories of climate migration, indigeneity, and resilience, and portray them through a mural in downtown Fort Collins, Colorado. He designed the mural based on interviews with students (Ricardo Ibarra Aguayo, Devany Lopez Núñez, and Estephany Hernandez Vega) and teachers in our local school district, local Native American friends of TWP and TWP partners in Central America and Pine Ridge, South Dakota
The mural will bring these complex stories to light and depict the many colors, intersecting stories, shared memories, challenges, and emotions that make up our beloved community. Our intention is to increase positive interactions between cultures in our hometown. We also commit, as an organization, to supporting the development of young leaders of color in our Fort Collins community.
Location: Alley in West Mountain Avenue (Between North Mason Street and North College Ave)
Armando Silva
Armando Silva is a painter, muralist, and performer who uses his artistic superpowers to tell powerful stories, build community, and inspire youth through art. As a recipient of a Governor's Creative Leadership award from Colorado Creative Industries in 2018, Armando has been celebrated for his collaborations with cities, non-profits, businesses, and educators across the state and beyond.
Armando was born in Sombrerete, Zacatecas, Mexico. At age 5, his family moved to Northern Colorado to pursue the American Dream, and Armando submerged himself into visual and performing arts as a way to communicate and find his identity as an ESL student. After developing his talents throughout high school, he decided to invest in them and received a BA in Fine Arts from The University of Northern Colorado.
Armando believes his artistic abilities come with the responsibility to lead, educate, and give back to the community. His artistic practice focuses on compelling portraits that tell personal stories, sometimes created on canvases in his studio, or other times created through live performance in front of thousands. Armando's large-scale mural installations give communities a way to communicate messages that can't always be said in words.
Armando currently lives in Greeley, Colorado and is deeply embedded in creative leadership throughout the community. He co-directs the Colorado Dance Collective, a non-profit adult dance company. His art studio space contributes to the revitalization of Downtown Greeley, and he serves on the Greeley Creative District board. Armando is on the Think360 artist roster, an agency that places working artists in schools for workshops, residencies, and performances.
“Fort Collins is a welcoming community. We’re open to all. This mural only speaks to that we are a wonderful, inclusive community. Everyone in our community is a co-creator in making it into a better one. It’s an honor for me to share, on behalf of our city council, that we’re very supportive of this project.”
–Wade Troxell, Former Mayor of the City of Fort Collins
Support Colores De Comunidad
THANKS!
Standing: Phillip Chavez, Paul Thayer, Jake Tornatzky, Kathleen Willard, Ray Tollison, Marilyn Thayer, Stuart Conway, Felisha Brower, Sebastian Africano, Claudia Menendez, Estephany Hernandez Vega, Hellen Castro Kneeling: James Calabaza, Gemara Gifford, Hannah Wittmeyer, Jenny Bramhall, Armando Silva, Jon Becker, Daniela Bueso