Denver's all-Black mural festival will return to Civic Center Park this summer.
Black Love Mural Festival, which last year helped promote the message of the BLM movement and provided paid opportunities to Black muralists, kicks off May 30 with a celebration of life for George Floyd and will run through August 2. The group will also host a live music event on June 20 to celebrate the completed murals.
Born out of last summer's social justice movement, BLMF took over Civic Center Park for a weekend last year, leaving behind a series of colorful monuments to Black identity in the form of temporary murals. Curated by Rob The Art Museum and IRL Art, the event displayed the murals on wood structures at the very park that was the center of last summer's protests.
This year, the team behind BLMF will partner with Denver Parks and Rec and the digital arts nonprofit Unique.One. Artists will begin painting their murals on May 28 and display them through August 1, 2021. On Sundays during the festival, the group will host live paintings, workshops and activations in the park from 2 to 10 p.m. BLMF will break down the murals the morning of August 2.
The festival is offering 44 paid opportunities for Black artists. Locals and artists living outside of Colorado are welcome to apply by May 17. Applications can be found on IRL's website.
Activation dates:
May 30th: A celebration of life for George Floyd
June 6
June 13
June 20th: Live music celebration for the completed murals
July 11
August 1
This story has been updated with more detail about the festival.
