School Murals

Thrive x Burton

Dance. Thrive. Chill. x Burton NYC

Please join us at the BURTON flagship store in Soho for an evening of creative expression and youth empowerment. Three organizations that create positive impact for the youth of New York City are joining forces in an event about movement, marks of expression and making turns. On Sept 7th Everybody Dance Now, Thrive Collective and…

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Community Joy in Harlem

It’s easy to define our differences, much harder to find the common ground that unites us. Community murals memorialize the shared vision that binds us together. Last night’s ribbon cutting event in Harlem on West 126th Street and Amsterdam Avenue reminded us why projects like “Create! Harlem” bring such joy. When we take the time…

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Partnering with NYC Cultural Affairs, Year 2

At Thrive Collective, we love stories that demand sequels. After proudly introducing the NYC Department of Cultural Affairs as a new partner last year, this year we saw an expansion of that relationship. Our principal champions remain NY City Council Members Vincent Gentile, Fernando Cabrera, and Donovan Richards, along with Antonio Reynoso who joined them…

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Two Summer Intensives in Harlem

“Summer Camp for Art Kids.” Thrive Collective’s Summer Intensives allow concentrated time for some of our most passionate and skilled students to work directly with world class artists to produce public art murals. Following the tradition of past summers at the Coney Art Walls and Mexico the last two years, our third annual season revolves…

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“Be the Change,” Like Nico

One of our greatest joys at Thrive Collective is empowering local artists to live their dreams while they create beauty collaboratively with the world around them. Consider Nico Collazo, teaching artist and art director for “Dream Walls 2.0” at PS/MS 34 this year (2017), and his fiancee Cynthia Dunston. In 2014, Nico was a student…

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Captain Jack’s Wonder Voyage

What a privilege to be trusted with “Captain Jack’s Wonder Voyage” at PS/MS 282 this year. This mural celebrates the life and creative energy of Jack Roberts, a pre-K student at the school whose life was tragically cut short in 2016. On Father’s Day 2017, we had the honor of dedicating the mural with Mr.…

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The Biggest Project Ever

The “I Am NYC” collaboration with the High School of Telecommunications, Arts, and Technology is a case study in why we love collaborating with teachers and NYC high school students. This, from first year art teacher Veronica Giurdanella: “This will be the view for every student attending HSTAT in Bay Ridge from now on. The…

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El Diario: Create an Immigrant Sanctuary

The June 11, 2017 issue of El Diario newspaper includes a photo essay from the production of La Lucha Continua: “’La Lucha Continúa’ se renueva en Manhattan como ‘santuario’ inmigrante,” by Marielis Acevedo, El Diario (June 06, 2017). Las manos de un niño de apenas dos años dejan su huella de color en el espacio como símbolo…

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Touch the World

In 2011, a Brooklyn elementary school embarked on a great adventure to proclaim through collaborative public art that all families are welcome in Bay Ridge regardless of immigration status, and all children could thrive at PS 102. In 2015, Rez and Rupsha — originally from Bangladesh — confirmed that the strategy worked. This spring, eight…

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