Editor’s Note: The usage of Hispanic, Latino/a/e/x and Chicano/a/e/x is in accordance with the preference and language of the sources and/or organizations included in this story.
The unveiling of the newly installed campus murals turned heads as new vibrant colors and freshly painted art designs adorned the Ernest E. Tschannen Engineering Teaching and Research Building at Sacramento State.
The “Place of Belonging” project brought many supporters to celebrate the artists’ work at the Library Quad on Sept. 17 for a short message of dedication and celebration, followed by a reception held afterward to view the artists’ work.
According to Senior Associate Vice President of University Communications Jeannie Wong, the Tschannen Engineering building was selected for these magnificently large works of art because it was a natural easel slot that could encompass each artist’s work equally.
“Each year, a committee comes up with a new theme representing belonging and becoming,” Wong said. “And each year, the building gets a fresh coat of new murals.”
This is the third and last phase of the “Place of Belonging” theme. The multiyear project started with the theme, “Believing,” followed by “Becoming” and the final phase for this year’s murals was about “Institutional Servingness.”
Now that the third phase is finished, Vice President and Chief Diversity Officer of Inclusive Excellence Michael V. Nguyen said the walkway that adorns the murals between the engineering building and The University Union will receive a new name, “Belonging Boulevard.”
Nonprofit Blue Line Arts, which promotes the arts and education in Placer County, also took an active role in the mural space by partnering with Sacramento State for a second year in a row.
“Our organization is passionate about impactful arts programming and making sure that our communities are vibrant,” Blue Line Arts Executive Director MaryTess Mayall said.
Blue Line Arts assisted with facilitating the mural selection committee by helping to coordinate with the artists’ needs over the two weeks it took to put up their design.
Dylan Molina, the site manager for the project, made sure artists had everything they needed to be successful, like drop clothes, disposals for their paints, electricity and paint buckets.
“I probably had the most fun job because I got to watch as all the artists applied their creativity and skill,” Molina said. “I got to learn what it meant to each of them to belong on our campus.”
Rosa Angelica Sarabia, co-founder of Azules Design Studio, focuses her art around the Latino community. When Sarabia was selected for her design along with her husband and Sac State alumnus Antonio Sarabia, the couple was thrilled to have the chance to work together on this project.
“We are super excited to be a part of this installment of art,” Rosa Sarabia said. “We featured, in our mural, the story telling of connectedness across generations, across disciplines, across time and even geography.”
Amari Moore, a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Studio Art graduate of 2024, saw a call for artists in the spring of 2025 and applied. Moore felt honored when she learned that she was one of the artists selected.
“I feel accomplished knowing my 30-foot painting will be seen by so many and knowing I’m giving back to the community,” Moore said.
After the completion of Moore’s mural, she will exhibit her first solo art show in October at the Sojourner Truth African Heritage Museum in Sacramento.
“Because of the mural project and the upcoming art show, my future looks hopeful,” Moore said.
The selection committee, which is made up of representatives from several different departments at Sac State, worked alongside Blue Line Arts to review 55 application design proposals submitted by students, alumni and faculty for a chance to design their interpretation of institutional servingness on the campus walls. Seven were selected.
Dean of the College of Arts and Letters Gladys Francis had continually visited the artists as a show of support while they worked on their murals over a two-week span.
“It was lovely to see the story behind the murals, the community behind it and to see generations of our faculty, alumni and students all tied into this together,” Francis said.
Francis explained that the campus murals reminded her of the power of the arts, the power of the voice through images and how so many interpretations can be around one mural.
“The power of that gives us discussion and critical thinking, and I am just so proud of that,” Francis said.
Nguyen shared what the murals meant to the campus during his speech to attendees of the mural unveiling.
“Each brushstroke represents a voice that matters,” Nguyen said. “Each color reflects a perspective that enriches us. These aren’t just decorations; they are declarations that inclusive excellence isn’t something we do, it’s who we are becoming together.”
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