Muralists Sought to Celebrate Balloon Culture

The contest theme is “Hot Air Balloon Culture.” Artists are encouraged to express their creativity of the memorable event New Mexico has every October, the Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta. To be eligible for this contest, artists must live in New Mexico, but both emerging and established artists are encouraged to apply.

The application deadline is Sept 17 at 9 p.m. and a winner will be announced on Oct. 6.

The winner of the contest will receive $10,000 and all needed supplies will be provided. The timeline for when the mural will go up after a winner is chosen is undecided but the last mural on the building took roughly two weeks to complete so that gives Metz Kelly Holdings an idea of how long it could take.

The mural will be displayed on a residential building in Downtown Albuquerque, also known as the Tower Plaza Building.

The building used to have a popular mural done by artist Francisco Diaz (alias Pastel), titled “Botanical Mural Project.”

“It's touching a hotspot of downtown, we know it's obviously going to be attracting tourists and people locally,” said Stephanie Hernandez, administrative assistant at Metz Kelly Holdings. “So we want to make something that's pretty and refreshing for the property.”

Interested artists can apply at /forms.gle/Bt9VmACgUH8Ymkvu6.