Travis Ivey was the first artist to begin working with the Laramie Mural Project in 2011. He is a 5th generation Wyoming native. His paintings reflect the beauty of the modern west and the impacts of development on the landscape.
While Ivey is drawn to the more industrial environments, he enjoys exploring opportunities to paint a wide range of subjects. Painting en plein air has helped him continue to learn new ways to develop stylistically, and maintain a fresh perspective in his studio work.
Travis painted Hollyhock Haven in 2011, Crossing Sherman Hill in 2013 and worked on the collaborative fish mural, Gill Street. http://www.travisivey.com/
Chelsea Lowry joined the Laramie Mural Project in 2014 out of a desire to give back to the community. She was born in Laramie and was thrilled to return in 2010 and found that the community valued freedom of expression, local pride, gorgeous natural spaces, honest western courtesy and genuine care for one’s neighbor.
As an artist and contributing member of the project, Chelsea hopes to create art that expresses the splendor of Laramie as a unique place and art that encourages visitors to find beauty and pride in the Gem City. She collaborated with eight other artists on the Gill Street mural and “The Originals” to the south entrance to the Historic Figures alleyway.
June Glasson is an artist and designer who resided in Laramie, WY from 2014-2018. She was born in Oyster Bay, NY in 1979 and received her B.A./B.F.A. from Cornell University in 2002. She is the recipient of the 2010 New York Foundation for the Arts Visual Arts Fellowship and the 2015 Wyoming Arts Council Biennial Fellowship. Her paintings have been exhibited at the Nicolaysen Museum in Casper, the National Portrait Gallery in London, Nature Morte Gallery in Berlin and various New York and US galleries. They have also appeared in The Wall Street Journal, New American Paintings, The Paris Review, Guernica Magazine, People Magazine, Domino, Asymptote Magazine, SAND Journal, Diner Journal and the film, My Idiot Brother. She is a co-founder of the Wyoming Art Party. http://www.juneglasson.com
June created the Laramie mural and two figures within the Historical Figures alleyway to include; Caroline Lockhart and Katherine Fowler-Billings.
Meg Thompson Stanton is a working artist and co-founder of Wyoming Art Party. Originally from Laramie, she received her B.A. from the University of Montana. After working as a carpenter throughout the West, and as a cabinetmaker in New York City, Thompson evolved into a professional visual artist and furniture maker. After being away from Wyoming for 15 years, she moved back to Laramie in 2011 and joined the mural project is 2013. In 2013, she won the commission to design bike racks for downtown Laramie. In 2014-2015, Thompson worked for the public art consulting team, Renee Piechocki and Jennifer McGregor, in developing the Laramie Public Art Plan. Thompson served as the coordinator for the Laramie Public Art Coalition from 2016-2019. Meg was part of the collaborative group of artists who created the Gill Street extension. View her work at megthompsonart.com or slowelk.com
Bethann Garramon Merkle is a multi-disciplinary artist, writer and educator fascinated by how ecosystems work. She teaches science communication courses at the University of Wyoming, where she also works as an illustrator and writer for the Wyoming Migration Initiative (www.migrationinitiative.org). Her contribution to the “Gill Street” mural extension – “School of the High Plains” – highlights Wyoming’s epic Path of the Pronghorn. At 100-miles each way, it is one of the longest migrations made by a hooved mammal in North America. Merkle’s design is a playful interpretation of these animals (a unique species endemic to our region) and their high-elevation summer ranges, low-elevation winter ranges, and the open, intact, sagebrush ecosystem upon which they depend. In her work, Merkle explores how stories influence people’s understanding and appreciation of topics like biodiversity, landscape conservation and human-wildlife interactions. Merkle holds a B.A. in environmental studies, wilderness issues and fine art (University of Montana, 2007) and an MFA in Nonfiction Creative Writing (University of Wyoming, 2017). Connect with her at www.ecologicallytruestory.org.
Lindsay Stoffers is a self-taught artist who has been in the business of creating since she hung her first painting on the wall when she was just a child. She earned a bachelor’s degree in Early Childhood Education (2007) and a Master’s Degree in Clinical Mental Health Counseling (2014) from the University of Wyoming. She is currently employed as a Mental Health Counselor and Teacher at ICARE, a program within Albany County School District #1 for students with severe social, emotional, and behavioral challenges. In this setting, Lindsay uses art therapy as a vessel for recovery and growth with the students she has the privilege to serve. Lindsay’s inspiration stems from the narratives she hears in the counseling setting, children & adolescent’s use of bold colors and lines, the strength and resiliency that she has witnessed in her community and throughout the world, and the incredible depth and courage of the human spirit. Lindsay has traveled the world, living and working in South Korea, Thailand, and India. She has exhibited her work on Jeju Island, South Korea (2009) auctioning all of her work to fund school supplies, food, pillows, and medication for 35 homeless children in Kerala, India. She most recently displayed her work at the 2017 Touchstone Laramie Art Exhibit in Laramie, Wyoming. When Lindsay joined the mural project she was eight months pregnant with her first and only child. Her contribution to the Gill Street mural highlights strength and resiliency within the female archetype and has symbolism hidden throughout. The design is dedicated to her beautiful son, River Nash Stoffers, whom was born the day painting on the Gill Street Extension began.
Adam Skadsen is a local artist who moved to Laramie for its mountains and burgeoning art scene. His full-time job as a Hydrographer takes him to many remote and beautiful landscapes in Wyoming that inspire his murals, photography and mixed media designs. He also enjoys working with his wife as wedding photographers for Anafinn Photography. Adam’s involvement with the Laramie Mural Project includes the “Cooked Fish” (2017) part of the Gill Street extension and “Rollin in the Sun” (2018) on the north wall of 612 South 2nd St.
Instagram- @skadsengriena
Seth Leininger is a Geology student at the University of Wyoming. He began painting after high school as a way to pass the time with several like-minded friends. Having a strong affinity for mountainous regions, he implements them in a colorful array within his paintings, blending in other strange ideas from the recesses of his mind. Seth contributed to the Gill Street extension.
Instagram - @mantisgrove
For Inquirers Email : Sethlein@gmail.com
Meghan Meier has been with the project since it’s beginning in 2011 and is a local tattooist and owner of Rolling Tattoo. She is interested in how geometric and abstract forms can be made to represent the local landscape, and often paints whimsical scenes of anthropomorphic animals or trees.
Meghan painted Grainery Grove in 2011 – 2013 and Escape in 2012. In addition, she was one of nine artists who worked collaboratively on Gill Street.
Dan Toro is a local artist who enjoys the creative voice art can bring out in all mediums. Dan is very thankful for the opportunity to collaborate with a group of artists who desire to transform the Laramie community by creating art which brightens small areas of the city one wall at a time.
Dan painted Growth in 2012, Book Shelf in 2013 and collaboratively worked on the fish mural, Gill Street. Over the past several years, Dan Toro has created numerous murals throughout Wyoming, Colorado and beyond. https://www.instagram.com/ziggaziggah/
Colleen Friday is an artist whose artwork starts as penciled geometric designs on graph paper that then make their way into digital collages, laser-cut jewelry, fabric prints and aerosol paintings. She uses designs handed down from her mother, a bead-work artist, as well as new imagery inspired by Arapaho symbolism and stories. She sees a connection between how she uses layers of geometric stencil designs with aerosol paint and how Native bead-work artists use different patterns with beads, often changing colors or sizes or recombining with new elements to create original designs and their own distinct style. Colleen Friday is an enrolled member of the Northern Arapaho Tribe, whose ancestors inhabited southeastern Wyoming, southwestern Nebraska and Colorado.
Colleen collaborated with eight other artists on Gill Street and with Adrienne Vetter for the Sherman Sage mural.
Evan Levi joined the Laramie Mural Project in 2014 and is a lifelong Laramie resident, raised on community and hard work. Evan worked in downtown Laramie for his father, Lester Levi, at Van’s Wholesale for many years. Evan is a craftsman and paints for the pure joy of it. He has shown his work in Denver and Steamboat Springs, Colorado.
Evan worked collaboratively on the Gill Street mural.
Adam Herrera is a photographer, documentary film-maker and former award-winning newspaper journalist. He has served in leadership roles for three documentary projects including Svara (2008); Revelar los Enlaces (2010); and Following the Manito Trail (2016). He served as the Digital Media Editor for the University of Wyoming and News Editor for the Douglas Budget newspaper in Douglas, WY. Herrera grew up in Eagle, Michigan and came to Wyoming in 2011. He holds degrees from Northern Michigan University and Brooks Institute. Examples of his work may be found at http://www.adamherrera.com
Adam contributed to the Gill Street extension.
Nancy Marlatt is an artist and designer that lives in Laramie, WY. She was born in Denver, Colorado in 1971 and earned her B.A. in Molecular Biology and B.A. in Environmental Biology both at the University of Colorado (1998) and most recently a B.F.A. at the University of Wyoming (2015). She has exhibited at Creative Works in Denver, Colorado; Gallery 234 at the University of Wyoming; and other local venues in Laramie, WY including the Laramie Pop-Up Art Walk in 2016. Primarily working in watercolor, she is most influenced by the people, places and events that have impacted her life; and her art is a reflection of that. A mother of a child with Autism, she aims to provoke thoughtful discussion and to educate or advocate for the differences that make us the same--human.
Nancy contributed to the Gill Street extension.
Peter Laegreid is a fisherman who does art and work on the side. Currently living in Laramie, he has resided on both coasts and the midwest. He graduated from Hastings College with a B.A. in English Literature. Peter is active in Laramie as the Outreach Specialist for Ark Regional Services and as president of the Laramie Valley chapter of Trout Unlimited. An avid hunter and angler, his art generally reflects his quarry, with a special emphasis on salmon-ids. As such, it was a great honor for him to be chosen to help on the Gill Street mural extension. He was thrilled to have the challenge of working on a much larger scale than his usual pen and paper.
John Deines was born and raised in Laramie, WY. Currently, he is working towards a degree in graphic design at the University of Wyoming. His work is influenced by his feelings and often portrays a spiritual representation, or feeling. His work is mostly inspired by nature and seeing other people create their own works of art. John hopes his work will inspire others to create and pursue what they desire in life.
John contributed to the Gill Street extension.
Jeff Hubbell joined the Laramie Mural Project in 2013. As a Laramie local, Jeff appreciates working and creating art in such a loving and creative community. He is passionate about traveling but always loves coming home to Laramie. One of his artistic goals is to share that love and creativity from an unexpected perspective.
Jeff collaborated with Lindsay Olson to create Prairie Dog Town which resides in the alleyway between Ivinson/Grand Ave. and 2nd/3rd Street. It spans the walls of three businesses to include; the Curiosity Shoppe, Herb House and Atmosphere Mountain Works. In addition, Jeff contributed to our fish mural, Gill Street.
Lindsay Olson joined the Laramie Mural Project in 2013. As a Laramie local, Lindsay appreciates working and creating art in such a loving and creative community. She is passionate about traveling but always loves coming home to Laramie. One of her artistic goals is to share that love and creativity from an unexpected perspective.
Lindsay collaborated with Jeff Hubbell to create Prairie Dog Town which resides in the alleyway between Ivinson/Grand Ave. and 2nd/3rd Street. It spans the walls of three businesses to include; the Curiosity Shoppe, Herb House and Atmosphere Mountain Works. Lindsay was one of nine artists who contributed to our fish mural, Gill Street. In 2015, she painted the Grain Field mural in the Hidden Figures Alleyway.
Adrienne Vetter is an artist and co-owner of an art and graphic design business. She works in a variety of mediums, from drawing and painting to multimedia art installations and is interested in topics of social class, cross-cultural organizing and narratives of Western Americana. Her work has been shown nationally and internationally. Adrienne feels a strong sense of connection to Laramie through her family’s ranch about 30 miles west of town and a nostalgic love for downtown inspired by the years she spent living in the Connor building. Adrienne is a co-founder of the Wyoming Art Party.
Adrienne created the logo for the Laramie Mural Project, collaborated on the Gill Street mural and contributed two murals to the Historical Figures alleyway, Sherman Sage and Wild West Social Justice.
Talal Cockar grew up in Nairobi, Kenya and having traveled to many places around the world, feels that his work is a reflection of those varied cultural perspectives. Talal believes that his work serves as an effective platform by which he’s able to speak about important issues which effect local and global communities. He draws his influence from vintage sign craftsmanship to the ingenuity of modern street art. While running a small commercial studio called, Urban Lion Design, Talal is proud to be part of the effort to bring public art to downtown Laramie.
Talal painted Tierra y Libertad and We Built the Dream.
Lauren Whitby has been an artist throughout her life and has always found creating art to be a release from the typical stresses of life. Lauren grew up in Scottsdale, AZ and moved to Laramie in July 2016. She has enjoyed becoming a part of the artistic community in Laramie and is impressed by the local artists who use their talents to add color and life to the town.
Lauren contributed to the Gill Street extension.
Billy Harris is a digital artist, designer, and student based in Laramie, Wyoming. His work has been featured in multiple digital publications, including the Behance.net Illustration Gallery, CreativeBloq, and the 2016 LG Ultrawide Festival. He has also exhibited in the 40th, 41st, and 42nd Annual Juried Student Exhibitions at the University of Wyoming. He works primarily within the digital practices of minimalist graphic design, layered photography / videography, and abstract creative coding. Through a multimedia combination of these practices, his work attempts to show the pliable boundary of the organic and digital, and fill the space between the ones and zeros of our world.
Billy contributed to the Gill Street extension.
Brooke Malia Mann graduated from Brigham Young University with a BFA in Illustration and a minor in English. She is currently working as an art teacher for individuals with mental disabilities and as a freelance illustrator, with a focus in children's books. Using her imagination and creating art that all ages can enjoy is one of Brooke's favorite things to do. Although she was born and raised in Southern California, Brooke is currently living in Laramie, Wyoming with her human husband, Randall, and canine baby, Berlin. brookemalia.com
Kari Siler is an Art Instructor at the Cooper Center for Creative Arts. She graduated from the University of Wyoming in 2012 with a Bachelor of Fine Arts. She is a Mixed Media artist living in Laramie, WY.
"There are more than 200 million insects for each human on the planet. The world holds 300 pounds of insects for every pound of humans. Yet, most humans like to pretend insects don't exist. They kill them, run from them, and look away whenever they are present. Insects are integral to life on Earth, and for that reason I bring light to them."