UW-Parkside and ArtRoot to Unveil Wall Poems of Racine Number Seven

Somers, Wis.- The University of Wisconsin-Parkside and ArtRoot will unveil the Wall Poem design work of a UW-Parkside student and a Racine resident poet on Sept. 15. ArtRoot’s Wall Poems of Racine No. 7 unveiling party is Sunday, Sept. 15 at 1951 Grove Ave Racine, WI. Street parking will be available. A brief history of the project and future projects will be shared, and the featured poet will recite her poem. This installation is the seventh in the series.

Wall Poems of Racine No. 7 features an excerpt from Mboya Sharif’s poem “I am a Woman.” UW-Parkside student Samantha Cibrario created the design in Professor Carey Waters’ community-based learning course. Building elevation drawings were provided by Bob Yuhas of RPY Architecture. Building owner Joe & Jackie Mangelsdorf offered the building to be painted and Dean Tawwater of Tawwater Sign Company painted the mural.

Wall Poems of Racine is an ArtRoot project, in partnership with UW-Parkside and other community partners. The project celebrates local literary talent by pairing an excerpt from a poem written by a Racine poet with a design created by a student from a graphic design class at UW-Parkside.

Each year, a poetry selection committee made up of local writers selects several poetry excerpts from Racine poets and provides them to graphic design students in a community-based learning course at UW-Parkside.

Building owners with a wall in good condition who are interested in having a Wall Poem of Racine painted on their building may email ArtRootRacine@gmail.com. To learn more about this project and to see step-by-step photos for each wall poem, visit artroot.org/wallpoems.

Wall Poems of Racine is supported by a grant from the Wisconsin Arts Board with funds from the State of Wisconsin and the National Endowment for the Arts. Additional funding was received from the Osborne and Scekic Family Foundation.

The University of Wisconsin-Parkside is committed to high-quality educational programs, creative and scholarly activities, and services responsive to its diverse student population, and its local, national, and global communities. We are a dynamic learning community grounded in academic excellence and focused on student success, diversity, inclusion, and community engagement. The campus serves as a premier comprehensive public institution and a destination of choice, serving as a focal point of local, regional, and global progress.

Media Contact:

Debra Karp
Director, Alan E. Guskin Center for Community and Business Engagement
University of Wisconsin-Parkside
karp@uwp.edu