Corpus Christi residents and tourists wandering the heart of downtown this week might have noticed artists up on aerial lifts with spray paint cans and brushes in hand. In preparation for the 2024 Downtown Corpus Christi Mural Fest, these artists have transformed blank walls into wondrous displays of creativity. Now in its third year, the addition of the National Mural Awards sets the festival apart from previous editions in the city.
Excitement for this year’s festival began June 3 as visiting artists from around the world started working on their individual murals. This year’s lineup consisted of four out-of-towners, Anthony Brooks, Stephanie Sanz, Sonny Behan and Andrey Kravtsov, alongside Cre8tive Culture’s handpicked local muralists. Artists were given large stretches of real estate as their street canvasses within the Marina Arts District, starting from N Chaparral Street all the way down to N Water Street.
To best commemorate the latest artwork, this month’s ArtWalk, hosted on June 7, will be renamed “MuralWalk,” and serve as the official celebration of both the murals and the artists who crafted them. The event will also include the usual wide variety of block parties, pop-up stages with live music, food trucks and vendors. MuralWalk welcomes visitors to take self-guided tours of the new editions to downtown’s public art scene. Each muralist will also be available on-site for brief discussions of their work.
Brooks’ Temporal Tides sprawls across the backside of the Centre Theatre on N Chaparral St. Sanz’s depiction of three surfer girls takes up the North Water apartment complex’s Water Street wall. Behan’s Wanderer commemorates the Cattle Tyrant spotting here in Corpus on the side of the Cosmopolitan and Kravtsov’s collaboration with AKA Sushi added a wall of whimsy to the business’ Water Street side.
Jeremy Flores, whose main goal throughout his career has always centered around uplifting and connecting with his community, spearheaded Cr8tive Culture’s involvement with the annual festival and the initiative to get local artists’ names on the bill. This year, five muralists from the Coastal Bend community were selected to help bring Cre8tive Culture’s Caring for the Community piece to life.
Closing off the 2024 Downtown Corpus Christi Mural Fest festivities, Saturday night’s VIP Wrap-Up Party will host the 2024 National Mural Awards. The event, taking place in Corpus Christi for the first time, will reveal both local and national winners. It will honor individual muralists from across the nation and the organizations that facilitated the art form in their communities.
With artwork spanning a large variety of subjects and styles, visitors can rest assured they will find a brand-new piece of art in their community to love and cherish. Stop by on Friday from 6-10 p.m. to support one of the city’s most vibrant and creative nights of the year!
