{"id":5062894,"date":"2025-11-25T09:00:00","date_gmt":"2025-11-25T17:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/walatinonews.com\/?p=5062894"},"modified":"2025-11-25T09:00:00","modified_gmt":"2025-11-25T17:00:00","slug":"mexart-2025-transforms-uws-campus-parkway-corridor","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/latinonewsnetwork.com\/waln\/2025\/11\/25\/mexart-2025-transforms-uws-campus-parkway-corridor\/","title":{"rendered":"New MexArt 2025 Murals Brighten UW Campus Parkway"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The week of Sept. 15, the Campus Parkway Corridor on the University of Washington\u2019s campus underwent a bold change. In just around eight days, the monotonous gray of the walls was covered in almost every color of the rainbow. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The transformation is part of MexArt 2025<\/a>, the largest Mexican and Mexican-American mural project ever created in Washington state. Presented by the Consulate of Mexico<\/a> in Seattle and the City of Seattle<\/a> as part of the MEXAM Northwest Festival<\/a>, the two-year open-air installation gathers ten artists around the theme of migration and belonging. It also supports outgoing Mayor Bruce Harrell\u2019s Many Hands Art Initiative, which is a part of his One Seattle Graffiti Plan, and uses public art to revitalize city spaces and amplify community voices.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Beyond the city funding and logistics, MexArts 2025 is very personal. Each mural tells a story shaped by the artist\u2019s own journeys of leaving home and building identity in a new place. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Karla Nahmmacher, the liaison for cultural affairs at the Consulate of Mexico in Seattle, said the team wanted the community itself to define the message. The city provided the walls and equipment through the One Seattle Graffiti team, and the consulate helped with logistics and funding, but the creative direction came from the artists. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe invited the community to see it happen,\u201d Nahmmacher said. \u201c[The art is] not something that just shows up. We wanted to bring awareness to the artistry and the process behind it.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

She said the theme for the artist-lead project grew out of the current climate for migrant communities. To choose the artists, the consulate gathered a few of the artists who had participated in MexArt 2024. These artists in turn chose which other artists they wanted to work with this year for MexArt 2025. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Walking east to west under the overpass, the first mural visible is \u201cThe Knot of Freedom,\u201d painted by artist Rene Julio<\/a>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Knot of Freedom is painted in shades of red, and features hands bound with rope, the faces of two children, and eagle claws. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe eagle represents freedom in this country, but here, it\u2019s holding people down.\u201d Julio said in a recent interview.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
Ren\u00e9 Julio\u2019s mural The Knot of Freedom, created for MexArt 2025. The piece shows bound hands, broken stars, and an eagle\u2019s claws holding people down, reflecting Julio\u2019s years living in the United States as an undocumented immigrant. Photo by Ayeda Masood.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Born in Mexico, Julio migrated to the United States in 1999. For 19 years, he was undocumented. He lived in constant fear of deportation or getting arrested, even if he did nothing wrong. However, that fear, and the perseverance it created for Julio, shaped the mural\u2019s imagery.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

 \u201cFor me, that\u2019s my approach to immigration,\u201d he said. \u201cIt\u2019s the rough way to see immigration.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Julio added the two children after starting the piece.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThose kids are the ones being affected the most,\u201d Julio said. \u201cThey see everything. And one day they\u2019ll ask, \u2018How could you think that was okay?\u2019\u2019 Behind the children, Julio painted broken stars, representing how the American dream is inherently broken.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Julio is a trained academic painter, and studied visual arts at the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM) in Mexico City, graduating in 1996. However, Julio had never worked with spray paint. He had to learn to use it due to the quick time frame of the project; when spray paint touches the wall, it dries immediately. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Learning another medium along with nine other artists was like an act of solidarity. While Julio normally works alone, he said working with the other artists was a great experience, as everyone was very supportive and helpful with showing him how the spray paint worked. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Now a U.S. citizen, Julio still thinks about friends who remain undocumented. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThat fear is still there, especially right now with anti-immigrant policies,\u201d Julio said. \u201cThis mural is for them.\u201d He hopes viewers stop to reflect rather than just pass by. \u201cIt\u2019s aggressive, but it makes you think,\u201d he said. \u201cThat\u2019s what I wanted.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A few walls down from \u201cThe Knot of Freedom\u201d is \u201cEl Abrazo.\u201d It was painted by Gerardo Pe\u00f1a, who goes by Periko the Artist. For him, MexArts 2025 was a chance to reclaim the immigrant narrative through collective creation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Periko\u2019s mural, in shades of purple, blue, black and white depicts a mother and daughter hugging, surrounded by monarch butterflies. The mother and daughter\u2019s arms are painted in a skeleton style as an ode to Day of the Dead. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI always use monarch butterflies to symbolize migration and immigration,\u201d Periko said in a recent interview.\u201cMonarch butterflies migrate throughout the Americas and tend to return around this time of the year, during Day of the Dead. I use them to represent our ancestors, for people who lost their lives migrating, or gave up their dreams in search of a better life.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The core of Periko\u2019s mural, the embrace between mother and child, comes from his own life. Periko left Mexico when he was 5 years old and spent 27 years in the United States before he was finally able to return after receiving his green card this year. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWhen I went back, I felt like I was embracing my family that I hadn\u2019t seen in over 27 years,\u201d Periko said. \u201cBut I didn\u2019t feel like I was just hugging them. I also felt like I was embracing my country.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Coming back to the United States was difficult for Periko; rather than feeling inspired, he felt lost. However, the MexArts project pulled Periko out of that feeling of emptiness. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWorking with all these other artists really helped me get out of my artist block,\u201d Periko said. \u201cIt re-inspired me. In a weird way, painting that mural was symbolic for me, like getting back out there and getting back into my life.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For Periko, the project \u201cMigration and Belonging\u201d was a lived experience, not just a theme. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Nahmmacher noted that the murals have continued to attract attention on social media. People regularly tag the artworks on Instagram, and the QR codes mounted beside each piece are scanned throughout the day by passersby who want to learn more about the project and its origins.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For Julio and Periko, the project is more than art. It\u2019s a personal record of fear, loss, belonging and renewal painted onto the concrete walls of the Campus Parkway Corridor.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI feel free when I paint,\u201d Julio said. \u201cIf I won the lottery tomorrow, I\u2019d still do murals, I\u2019d just do them everywhere, for free.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Ayeda Masood is a student at the University of Washington.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Cover Photo: Gerardo Pe\u00f1a\u2019s mural “El Abrazo”, created for MexArt 2025. The mother and daughter are surrounded by monarch butterflies, a symbol of migration and memory in Pe\u00f1a\u2019s work. By Ayeda Masood.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Each mural reflects the artists\u2019 own stories. Rene Julio\u2019s \u201cThe Knot of Freedom\u201d explores the fear and pressure he felt during his years as an undocumented migrant. A few walls down, Gerardo Pe\u00f1a\u2019s \u201cEl Abrazo\u201d centers on a mother and daughter\u2019s embrace, inspired by his return to Mexico after nearly three decades away. Visitors now stop, scan QR codes, and follow the murals on social media, turning the corridor into a space where personal history and public art meet.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":61,"featured_media":5062895,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_uag_custom_page_level_css":"","ghostkit_customizer_options":"","ghostkit_custom_css":"","ghostkit_custom_js_head":"","ghostkit_custom_js_foot":"","ghostkit_typography":"","_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":"","_ppma_block_editor_authors":""},"categories":[198],"tags":[525,1433,23,25,20,5696],"ppma_author":[6009],"class_list":["post-5062894","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-arts-culture","tag-art","tag-culture","tag-hispanics","tag-latinos","tag-seattle","tag-university-of-washington"],"acf":[],"mb":[],"uagb_featured_image_src":{"full":["https:\/\/latinonewsnetwork.com\/waln\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2025\/11\/Ayeda-Masood-Photo-2-scaled-1.jpg",2560,1709,false],"thumbnail":["https:\/\/latinonewsnetwork.com\/waln\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2025\/11\/Ayeda-Masood-Photo-2-scaled-1-150x150.jpg",150,150,true],"medium":["https:\/\/latinonewsnetwork.com\/waln\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2025\/11\/Ayeda-Masood-Photo-2-scaled-1-300x200.jpg",300,200,true],"medium_large":["https:\/\/latinonewsnetwork.com\/waln\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2025\/11\/Ayeda-Masood-Photo-2-scaled-1-768x513.jpg",768,513,true],"large":["https:\/\/latinonewsnetwork.com\/waln\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2025\/11\/Ayeda-Masood-Photo-2-scaled-1-1024x684.jpg",1024,684,true],"1536x1536":["https:\/\/latinonewsnetwork.com\/waln\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2025\/11\/Ayeda-Masood-Photo-2-scaled-1-1536x1025.jpg",1536,1025,true],"2048x2048":["https:\/\/latinonewsnetwork.com\/waln\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2025\/11\/Ayeda-Masood-Photo-2-scaled-1-2048x1367.jpg",2048,1367,true]},"uagb_author_info":{"display_name":"Ayeda Masood","author_link":"https:\/\/latinonewsnetwork.com\/waln\/author\/ayeda-masood\/"},"uagb_comment_info":0,"uagb_excerpt":"Each mural reflects the artists\u2019 own stories. Rene Julio\u2019s \u201cThe Knot of Freedom\u201d explores the fear and pressure he felt during his years as an undocumented migrant. A few walls down, Gerardo Pe\u00f1a\u2019s \u201cEl Abrazo\u201d centers on a mother and daughter\u2019s embrace, inspired by his return to Mexico after nearly three decades away. Visitors now…","authors":[{"term_id":6009,"user_id":49,"is_guest":0,"slug":"katie-fahey","display_name":"Ayeda Masood","avatar_url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/644a67b4f1e6c18309b52122191a3572979e0f36af6348fda52eb6401d697c31?s=96&d=mm&r=g","avatar_alt":"","avatar_decorative":"","author_category":"","first_name":"","last_name":"","user_url":"","job_title":"","description":""}],"mfb_acf":[],"mfb_rest_fields":["title","uagb_featured_image_src","uagb_author_info","uagb_comment_info","uagb_excerpt","authors"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/latinonewsnetwork.com\/waln\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5062894","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/latinonewsnetwork.com\/waln\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/latinonewsnetwork.com\/waln\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/latinonewsnetwork.com\/waln\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/61"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/latinonewsnetwork.com\/waln\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5062894"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/latinonewsnetwork.com\/waln\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5062894\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/latinonewsnetwork.com\/waln\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/5062895"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/latinonewsnetwork.com\/waln\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5062894"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/latinonewsnetwork.com\/waln\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5062894"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/latinonewsnetwork.com\/waln\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5062894"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/latinonewsnetwork.com\/waln\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/ppma_author?post=5062894"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}