Coming soon to walls in St. Paul: 7 murals for Creative Enterprise Zone’s Chroma Zone festival

Jared Kaufman, Pioneer Press
·3 min read

Noted muralists — including three from the Twin Cities — will bring seven large-scale artworks to St. Paul walls this summer as part of the annual Chroma Zone Mural and Art Festival.

The festival, headquartered in the Creative Enterprise Zone district, also includes a pair of artist talks in May and August and three days of programming in September.

Plus, St. Paul-based Lakhota cultural brand Owns The Battle — founded by Lisa DeCory and Thomasina Top Bear, a muralist for the 2021 festival — will lead a community mural project inspired by Oceti Sakowin beadwork near the end of the festival.

This is the festival’s fifth year, and organizers say 55 murals have been created so far.

Here are this year’s muralists, in chronological order:

Birdcap

The alter ego of Mississippi native Michael Roy, Birdcap has painted murals across the U.S. and Asia that are at once cartoon-inspired and tinged with anxiety and emotion. Painting the week of May 20; west wall of the Security Building, 2395 W. University Ave.

Juliette Perine Myers

Based in Minneapolis, she paints sweeping, dreamlike scenes with mythological or magical elements. She painted a mural at the Joyful World Mural Park at the 2023 Minnesota State Fair. Painting in late June; west wall of Roundtable Coffee Works, 2386 Territorial Rd.

Xilam Balam

Raised on the East Side of St. Paul, his work “is a fusion of Pre-Columbian Indigenous art forms with contemporary hip-hop and graphic arts,” per the festival. Painting in June/July; south wall of the Midway Industrial Mile Warehouse, 2228 W. Territorial Rd.

Danielle SeeWalker

Living in Colorado and a citizen of the Standing Rock Sioux Nation in North Dakota, her art focuses on Lakȟóta storytelling and Indigenous history. Painting late July/early August; east wall of the Minneapolis-St. Paul Building, 2429 W. University Ave.

Jordan Hamilton

Also in Minneapolis, his work aims to bring surrealist, spiritual, cosmic energy to contemporary discussions of community and ancestry. This is his second Chroma Zone mural: During the 2021 festival, he painted “Sankofa: Mutable Stability” on a semitrailer parked at Urban Growler Brewing Co. at 2325 Endicott St. Painting in August/September; north wall of the Hampden Park Co-Op, 928 Raymond Ave.

Mariela Ajras

From Argentina — and with a psychology background — her work focuses on gender and memory. Another returning artist: Her first Chroma Zone mural, “Motherhood and Migration,” was painted as part of the 2019 festival at 2327 Wycliff St., a site she’ll return to this year. Painting in September; south wall of The Wycliff, 2327 Wycliff St.

Event schedule

Here’s the event schedule:

• Thursday, May 23: Meet-and-greet and artist talk with Birdcap (a.k.a. Michael Roy). 6:30 to 8 p.m. at the Community Room at MODA (760 Raymond Ave.). Free; refreshments included.

• Thursday, Aug. 8: Meet-and-greet and artist talk with Danielle SeeWalker. 6:30 to 8 p.m. at NewStudio Gallery (2303 Wycliff St.), though please note the date is tentative. Full details at chromazone.net. Free; refreshments included.

• Thursday, Sept. 19: Artist panel with 2024 muralists and a makers market. Market and artist meet-and-greet runs 6:30 to 7:30, and the moderated panel discussion runs 7:30 to 8:30 at Urban Growler Brewing (2325 Endicott St.). Free; food and beverage for purchase.

• Friday, Sept. 20: Community mural project. From 5 to 8 p.m. at Baker Court (821 Raymond Ave.), meet muralist and Owns The Battle owner Thomasina Top Bear; get involved in a live mural painting; shop an Indigenous makers market; and take walking mural tours. All free; food and beverage for purchase.

• Saturday, Sept. 21: Live painting and mural tours. Every hour on the hour from noon to 4 p.m., bus tours will depart from Dual Citizen Brewing Co (725 Raymond Ave.) to see all the Chroma Zone murals. Plus, as part of Dual Citizen’s Blocktoberfest, there’ll also be hands-on art activities from 12:30 to 3 p.m., as well as plenty of live music and food trucks. Entry and bus tours are free.

Find more details online at chromazone.net.

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