Press release:
On April 6, 2017 at 4pm Avenue M Restaurant & Bar will be hosting an art opening and you’re invited to attend! The opening will feature new murals designed and painted by youth in Eliada’s programs.
Youth in both Day Treatment and after school programming got the opportunity to participate in this public art project. Youth in Day Treatment come to Eliada daily for school. They have struggled in a traditional school setting and Eliada is often the first place they have won an academic award, gotten along with teachers, and made friends.
Youth in Eliada’s after school programming at Emma Elementary get homework assistance, work on their literacy skills, and receive daily enrichment programming to keep them excited about learning.
The project began when Avenue M gave Eliada five large panels to design and paint. Students in Day Treatment spent a day coming up with ideas for the visual content of the murals. They then primed the panels and started painting.
The murals include some creative designs. One mural has a city skyline with a sunset backdrop. The words “We are weird, we are strong, we are Asheville” line the sky.
Another design uses a striking stripe pattern in the background with a portrait of a horse in the foreground. A third design shows a strong solid tree, whose roots spell out “Eliada.”
Over at Emma Elementary, the collaborative process included kindergarteners through fourth grade students. And what theme did everyone agree on? Rainbows. The students designed and painted two murals that feature rainbows, one of which has a unique 3-dimentional element, differentiating it from traditional mural designs.
“Avenue M Restaurant & Bar is thrilled to partner with students from Eliada on the creation of new art panels for the exterior of our building. We are anxious to see the final results of all their hard work and creativity and look forward to celebrating the art opening with them!”~Nicole Siegel, Avenue M Restaurant & Bar
Thanks to Avenue M’s commitment to children in our community, Eliada’s kids got to feel a sense of pride in their work, acceptance and belonging in the greater Asheville community, and a sense of value in themselves and their abilities.
Eliada students, staff, and parents will attend the art opening on April 6th. This event is open to the press. At 5pm, the restaurant will be open to the public.
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