First seen in the Colorado Springs Independent
Gregg Deal of Peyton won $10,000 from the Art on the Streets program, a first-place award for his mural, “Take Back the Power.” Deal is an indigenous artist from the Pyramid Lake Paiute tribe. His 77-foot work at the northeast corner of 3 N. Tejon St. is a portrait of his oldest daughter. The red handprint on her face represents the epidemic of missing and murdered Indigenous women and girls who face disproportionate rates of murder and disappearance in America and Canada.
“This mural raises questions about the inherent invisibility of Indigenous people, specifically referencing the abnormally high rate at which Indigenous women, girls and two-spirit individuals go missing or are murdered,” Deal said. “With this portrait of my oldest daughter, I hope to move the viewer and open up dialogue within the local community.”
The 22nd annual Art on the Streets exhibit launched Aug. 7.
LJ Dawson 