Community Art
Lansing Thrive Space: Health & Financial Wellness Mural
The health & financial wellness mural, created by Muralmatics, is part of a collaborative effort between LAFCU, Ourspace (517), Muralmatics, and the Nelson Gallery to create the Lansing Thrive Space. The mission behind this activation is to activate a cultural, sustainable, creative, inclusive, educational, equitable, and interactive space that is shared by the Lansing community so they can thrive through their health & financial wellness journey.
Located at the Nelson Gallery 113 South Washington, Lansing
Lansing Thrive Space
Dustin Hunt, artist, educator, and Muralmatics founder, created a nine-panel, modular, mobile mural that reflected important concepts identified by Lansing community members. Ideas around improving health, wellness, and financial literacy in disenfranchised communities can be seen in several parts of the modular mural. Additionally, Hunt depicted two youths, each building an ancient deity, to connect ancient history to an inspirational future. One child builds the Egyptian deity Heka, associated with magic and medicine. The other youth is building the Aztec deity Toci, associated with healing. Hunt highlights ingenuity, skill, and feats of engineering found in ancient history to suggest that descendants of African and Latin cultures are inherently brilliant. Hunt chose the specific deities to indicate that healing and magic are potential remedies to decades-long suffering from systemic racism that disenfranchised communities face in Lansing and beyond.
Hunt facilitated a two-day workshop for Lansing high-school students to participate in painting a portion of the modular mural. The workshop offered spray paint and safety tutorials, conversations around the mural's content, and space for each student to create and take home a unique work of art.
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Act With Love & Equality Art Initiative
Acting with love and equality is so important, especially now. This mission brought together Michigan artists, showcasing pieces of artwork using ten words related to love & equality.
Thank you to each and every artist who submitted their work!
The LAFCU Letters Art Exhibit
Congratulations to Nevin Speerbrecker, Brian Whitfield, Azalea Miller, Ariana Moreno, and Sofia Perez as the winners of the LAFCU Serves Series. This series is a traveling art exhibit combining the talents of five Michigan artists. The series supports products, community, and our statewide membership.
We first introduced our letters, which together span 35 feet, in a television commercial in 2016. The next year, five Michigan artists transformed them into our traveling art exhibit titled the LAFCU Art, Growth, & Community Series. This year we have five new paintings that are a part of this wonderful traveling art exhibit titled "LAFCU Serves Series".
Nevin Speerbrecker
Style: Illustrative/Surrealism
Materials: Acrylics
Nevin Speerbrecker’s letter “L” was influenced by Michigan’s rural winding road landscape and the LAFCU theme of “around every corner.”
Nevin Speerbrecker grew up in Lansing and Lansing Public Schools and studied art illustration at Lansing Community College. He has works as a Graphic Designer/Illustrator in and around Lansing. Recently exhibiting his work in several area Micro Breweries and doing illustrative covers for Lansing’s Own City Pulse Newspaper.
Brian Whitfield
Style: Cubism
Materials: Acrylics, Paint Markers
Brian Whitfield’s letter “A” is influenced by the shape of the letter itself. The top of the “A” was a perfect frame to create an umbrella. The umbrella represents the protection a family receives when they refinance a new roof. They are also amazed at the energy savings that have accumulated by making such a wise decision.
Lansing professional graphic/fine artist known for painting the “Under the Bridge” murals and designing the Michigan Mackinac Bridge license plate. Brian Whitfield received an illustration’s degree from Kendall College of Art and Design in Grand Rapids and later received his masters in painting from The Maryland Institute College of Art.
Azalea Miller
Materials: Acrylics
LAFCU serves you statewide. This is awesome not only because of the multiple ways to access your financials, but also amazing because it’s rooted in Michigan. To me, what better way to show Michigan then to depict what makes the mitten special. From the state flower, to the state capital, to Detroit being the “car capital of the world,” I wanted to encompass the many features of Michigan and show that LAFCU is deep rooted within its community.
Lansing, college graduate and self-taught artist with plans to become a midwife.
Ariana Moreno
Materials: Acrylics, Paint Markers
My inspiration was LAFCU. I wanted to focus on LAFCU because I want the audience to see what LAFCU is capable of. What better way of showing off that then painting their new creative ideas like their new credit cards. I also want to show money going in and out the letter C, just like the credit union LAFCU.
Waverly High School senior with plans to advance her art knowledge and skills.
Sofia Perez
Style: Cartoon
Materials: Acrylics
I chose to base my art on the credit union concept of “people helping people.” I chose the letter “U” because credit unions are dedicated to YOU—the people that they serve through their various financial services and guidance. I chose to break down their philosophy into a few key ideas depicted in different gears within my letter. I chose to put these key concepts in gears, because every aspect of “people helping people” is needed for credit unions to successfully implement this idea in order to truly improve financial stability and strengthen their connection with their members.
I am a recent 2019 graduate of DeWitt High School and current student at University of Michigan Ann Arbor Class of 2023.
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