(Oct. 16, 2018) – UTSA art students are making their mark on San Antonio Zoo with a new, vibrant mural on one of its exhibits.
UTSA students and faculty spent hundreds of hours creating the two-story mural entitled “The Marketplace” on the Africa Live! building.
Zoo guests can now enjoy a very colorful depiction of animals indigenous to the Savanna region of Africa. Zebras, lions, aardvarks, warthogs and elephants can be seen coexisting in harmony in a fictionalized trading village.
Andrei Renteria '15, M.F.A. alumnus and a mural painting instructor in the UTSA Department of Art & Art History, coordinated the project and said he’s extremely proud of his students and the volunteers involved for bringing their vision to life on this more than 800 square foot space during the ten-week semester project.
Renteria said his art students had to design, produce, and present their ideas to the zoo. They had to research and study the animals, cultures, colors, and patterns of the region and received helpful input on the design from the African Student Association at UTSA.
“The students had to meet clients and come up with a proposal and budget. It’s helpful to learn this process, if they want to turn their art into a business. This project gives them that opportunity to practice,” said Renteria. “Most of our students are trained as individual painters but for this public art project they got to collaborate and share their talents with the community.”
UTSA students Katie Bollman, Elizabeth Camilletti, Jake Herrera, Rebekah Hurst and Sonya Marie Sky worked together on this mural.
“My art is a part of the community now and my name is out there. I’m just glad that I’m a UTSA student because I don’t think I would have gotten this opportunity elsewhere,” said Bollman. “I remember going to the zoo as a kid and I’m glad I can help create those happy memories for children and their families.”
Tim Morrow ’97, CEO and executive director of San Antonio Zoo, said he’s proud of the work UTSA students put into this mural.
“This year we’re excited to partner with the Department of Art & Art history to help give a beautiful facelift to one of our most iconic buildings,” said Morrow. “I’m particularly excited about this partnership because I’m an alumnus of UTSA and many of us who work at the zoo are.”
“When Tim Morrow invited us to participate in this project, he tapped into what we call the COLFA signature experience,” said Daniel J. Gelo, dean of the UTSA College of Liberal and Fine Arts and Stumberg Distinguished University Chair. “It’s the concept whereby every student that we teach has an opportunity to apply their learning to an experience in the community.”
UTSA alumni, Martin ’94 and Rebecca J. Salinas ’00, ’11, sponsored the project. The couple has generously supported UTSA in the past. They created the Jesus Rodriguez and Lorenzo Salinas Endowed Fellowship in the College of Business and the Angie Martinez Memorial Scholarship in the College of Education and Human Development.
This mural is the first of four phases of student artwork that will cover the Africa Live! building.
This project is the second collaborative initiative between UTSA and San Antonio Zoo. During the 2018 spring semester, students enrolled in a UTSA Honors College course designed and installed three enrichment devices for the zoo’s elephants.
San Antonio Zoo is one of the many partners in the UTSA Classroom2Career program, which offers opportunities for experiential learning in real world businesses and careers. Classroom2Career provides students with opportunities to serve the local community, expand knowledge in their fields of study and fine-tune their hands-on skills prior to graduation.
UTSA is ranked among the nation’s top five young universities, according to Times Higher Education.
Learn more about UTSA Department of Art & Art History.
Learn more about UTSA College of Liberal and Fine Arts.
Learn more about San Antonio Zoo.
Connect with UTSA online at Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Instagram and LinkedIn.
UTSA Today is produced by University Communications and Marketing, the official news source of The University of Texas at San Antonio. Send your feedback to news@utsa.edu. Keep up-to-date on UTSA news by visiting UTSA Today. Connect with UTSA online at Facebook, Twitter, Youtube and Instagram.
This academically rigorous mathematics-based summer enrichment program prepares middle and high school students for advanced studies in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM). Participants learn about problem-solving systems, develop greater awareness of STEM careers and strengthen their research skills.
UTSA Main CampusArchaeology 101 will introduce campers to archaeology and build on learned skills through experimental activities (like cave painting, weaving, and garbology).
Center for Archaeological Research, UTSA Main CampusThe camp exposes rising high school juniors, rising seniors and incoming college freshman to the many facets of the criminal justice system. Students will have opportunities to learn the functions of police in society and apply scientific theories to criminal investigations by examining a mock crime scene.
UTSA Main CampusThe Academy for Teacher Excellence Research Center invites you to join us for the Summer Bridging Institute. This institute will focus on being lifelong growers and continually seeking to increase our skills as educators.
UTSA Downtown CampusArchaeology 201 will briefly go over the foundations of archaeology and related skills, followed by a different topic over the course of this week (like skeletal analysis, global cultures, and more).
Center for Archaeological Research, UTSA Main CampusCraft a comic to create your own narrative and find your voice through storytelling. Participants will learn to create characters that are self-reflective and through a community lens.
REGSS Community Room (DB 3.202,) UTSA Downtown CampusCome enjoy a discussion on art as a self expression in the age of moving technology and telling your story with a community.
REGSS Community Room (DB 3.202,) UTSA Downtown CampusThe University of Texas at San Antonio is dedicated to the advancement of knowledge through research and discovery, teaching and learning, community engagement and public service. As an institution of access and excellence, UTSA embraces multicultural traditions and serves as a center for intellectual and creative resources as well as a catalyst for socioeconomic development and the commercialization of intellectual property - for Texas, the nation and the world.
To be a premier public research university, providing access to educational excellence and preparing citizen leaders for the global environment.
We encourage an environment of dialogue and discovery, where integrity, excellence, inclusiveness, respect, collaboration and innovation are fostered.
UTSA is a proud Hispanic Serving Institution (HSI) as designated by the U.S. Department of Education .
The University of Texas at San Antonio, a Hispanic Serving Institution situated in a global city that has been a crossroads of peoples and cultures for centuries, values diversity and inclusion in all aspects of university life. As an institution expressly founded to advance the education of Mexican Americans and other underserved communities, our university is committed to promoting access for all. UTSA, a premier public research university, fosters academic excellence through a community of dialogue, discovery and innovation that embraces the uniqueness of each voice.