A four-week mural art class in Stockton is helping young artists learn mural painting techniques, express themselves, and connect with their community
STOCKTON, Calif. —
A four-week mural art class is giving Stockton youth the chance to develop their skills, express themselves and see the power in art.
The class is teaching young Stockton artists how to turn their ideas into murals, from the first sketch to the final paint stroke.
Kia Duras-Carter is a mural artist and the teacher of the Stockton youth class. She said it’s a cool way for students to also bond with their peers.
“It was an idea to help marginalized youth and teach them how to paint murals,” Duras-Carter said. “Like a mural painting class.”
The four-week class is hosted at the Reinvent South Stockton Coalition’s office.
Several students are learning how to develop their designs and draw inspiration from what makes Stockton feel like home.
“Let’s start with the people, the diversity, the different foods they all loved, all the different types of foods, the events that happen downtown, all the different events that go on,” Duras-Carter said. “They wanted to incorporate that.”
The class also helps these young artists to decompress from their daily schedules.
“It’s a stress relief,” Duras-Carter said. “It’s a good way to end your day and you feel like you didn’t even do anything. You didn’t go to school. It just washes all that away. It shows them how you build their confidence, because it takes a lot of confidence to take a little drawing and make it really big.”
The program will run through Oct. 24, on Mondays, Tuesdays and Saturdays.
The class also hopes to teach young artists how to turn art into a career.
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