Key Points:
- Colombian artist Nathalia Gallego to complete new mural at Wichita State University.
- Mural, “Adelante Juntos – Forward Together,” to showcase Hispanic contributions to the university.
- Project amplifies WSU’s Hispanic-Serving Institution goals and commitment to access and affordability.
Almost anyone who visits northeast Wichita has seen the enormous “El Sueno Original – The Original Dream” painted on the side of the Beachner Grain Elevator and easily visible from both 21st Street and from the I-135 bypass.
That mural, the product of the Horizontes Project, was completed in 2018 by Colombian artist Nathalia Gallego (GLeo) with Wichita State University students and alums contributing research and time. The Horizontes Project was designed to connect the predominantly Hispanic area of north-central Wichita and the historically African American neighborhoods just east of it.
Now, Gallego is back in Wichita where she will complete a new mural, called “Adelante Juntos – Forward Together” that will cover the wall of the Duerksen Fine Arts Center Amphitheater. She arrived in Wichita in late March and is working on the mural, with an expected public unveiling on May 3.
“It adds to the cultural vibrancy of the university,” said WSU President RickMuma. “We’re now an emerging Hispanic-Serving Institution. Bringing art focused on the Latino population of the university, the city and the state demonstrates that we value everybody on campus. That’s what I see this mural doing for the campus.”
A Hispanic-serving institution (HSI) is defined in U.S. federal law as an accredited, degree-granting, public or private nonprofit institution of higher education with 25% or higher total undergraduate Hispanic or Latino full-time equivalent (FTE) student enrollment. In the 2021–22 academic year, 572 institutions met the federal criteria, up from 539 institutions in the 2018–19 academic year.
With 17% of its undergraduate students at WSU identifying as Hispanic, the university is designated an Emerging HSI. WSU’s goal is to reach the 25% necessary to earn the federal government’s designation as an HSI by the end of this decade.
The Project
The project sprung from conversations about how to liven up the parking garage near the Rhatigan Student Center. Its brick walls made a mural impractical. But the Duerksen amphitheater offered an appealing canvas at a prominent campus spot.
“I would always ask (students) to identify underutilized areas of campus that could be activated,” said Kristin Beal, curator of public practice at WSU’s Ulrich Museum of Art. “The amphitheater is always the top of that list.”
Local artist Armando Minjárez originally brought Gallego to Wichita as a Knight Cities Challenge winner with the Horizontes Project. He is also producing this new mural for the Ulrich Museum of Art.
“We had some great partnerships with Wichita State for that project,” Minjárez said. “We wanted to bring that same spirit onto campus.”
Gallego will use photos and information gathered through student research and Special Collections that show Hispanic contributions to the university over the years.
“It’s acknowledging that there’s been plenty of Hispanic students who have already left their imprint,” Minjárez said. “Our first step was to reach out to the Hispanic and Latino students who are already enrolled. Their predecessors have also shaped the university in different ways.”
“Wichita State University is situated in a culturally rich area of the city,” said Dr. Sara Mata, executive director, WSU Hispanic Serving Institution. “It is thrilling how this mural will showcase and visibly represent our Latine students, families and the overall community.”
“As an emerging HSI, it is vital to find ways to reflect the demographics of our students as well as the State of Kansas,” Mata said. “The authenticity and intentionality that has gone into this project is immense. It is wonderful to see it finally come to fruition.”
This article includes information provided by WSU Strategic Communications
