Painting Community with the Bresee Foundation
Words by Alexander Seyum
Joining Colossal Media in 2023 was a whirlwind of inspiration and creativity. I was immediately introduced to an extraordinary initiative called Start Today, spearheaded by Recruiter, Vanessa Kreytak and created by Colossal's visionary President, Kelly Peppers.
Start Today is a beacon of hope for community groups often overlooked by society. This program unites community members from the non-profit sector with our talented paint production team to bring vibrant murals to life, celebrating the community-serving work of nonprofits. Inspired by Colossal Media's impactful community projects in New York, I eagerly joined Start Today with the goal of bringing a community mural to LA.
My search for a non-profit partner led me to reconnect with URA (Under Represented Artists), and soon, The Bresee Foundation emerged as the perfect collaborator. Established in 1982, The Bresee Foundation has been a pillar of support for families striving to break the cycle of poverty. Many of the youth involved with Bresee come from migrant families from Mexico and Central America, all seeking a brighter future. Bresee's mission is to empower these young individuals with skills and resources to succeed in America.
In April 2023, I toured The Bresee Foundation's space and was blown away by what I saw. The youth were immersed in learning game design, photography, filmmaking, math, science, and engineering within their brand-new studio, generously sponsored by the Los Angeles Dodgers.
Beyond skill development, Bresee offers college prep courses, guiding students toward prestigious institutions like USC, UCLA, and Berkeley. The nonprofit also provides crucial gang reduction programs, offering youth a path away from the pressures of street gangs. Excited by this discovery, I proposed a Start Today partnership with The Bresee Foundation and the response was overwhelmingly positive from our Colossal team!
As we connected with Bresee’s leadership and brainstormed the mural project, Bresee's vision was clear: "Community." Together with Bresee's art students and our creative team at Colossal Media, we crafted a stunning design celebrating the intersection of global cultures – embodying unity.
Our Colossal LA team was out in full force completing the "Community" mural and attending the Art Day to teach the students painting techniques and to inspire them to pursue a career in the arts. As we were in the middle of teaching the students at Bresee, I could see their smiles and hear their laughter around the room. For our Colossal team, this day was a heartfelt opportunity to pass on our skills and knowledge to a new generation of young professionals and creatives. It was a beautiful culmination of months of planning.
Experimenting with the same techniques as our professional painters, the students painted their own personalized, miniature versions of the new Bresee mural! Their canvases featured graphic visuals of holding hands, hands surrounding a globe, and read: "Community."
Additionally, we welcomed students from the Wembley to Soweto UK program, LA branch, to photograph "behind the scenes" moments of this special day. Over twenty-five students and educators from Colossal Media, Bresee, and Wembley to Soweto participated in this groundbreaking Art Day in LA.
This experience was incredible for our Colossal Media team, and I know the Bresee community will cherish our “Community” mural for years to come.
A special thanks to the Colossal team members who worked on this project: Levon Meserlian, Xav Baxter, Brandon Jenkins, Dre Villa, Christine Stoeber, Armando Assael Hernandez, Alexander Seyum, Joi Tillman, Vanessa Kreytak, Jewel Addy, Katie Danforth, Lumi Jewell, Hartwick Hanson, John Samels, and all the members of the Start Today committee.
Heartfelt gratitude to our partners at The Bresee Foundation for making this project possible, including Executive Director Seth Eklund, Associate Director Dunia Perich, Director of Operations Rene Lopez, and Case Manager for the GRYD Program, Boris Villacorta.