In The NoCo

Armando Silva’s vibrant murals adorn walls across Colorado. He hopes a new festival will inspire more outdoor art

By In The NoCo,

Published September 13, 2024 at 5:35 AM MDT

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A woman in a white tank top and gray slacks stands by a man in an orange hat and a jean jacket. They stand in front of a mural that reads "Cheers from Greeley." — "We hope we can lift up some of the creatives within town, give them something new to to enjoy and to look forward to," says Greeley-based artist Armando Silva. Along with musician Briana Harris, he's helping launch WeldWalls, a new mural and outdoor art festival beginning Sept. 17.

Greeley artist Armando Silva paints some of the most prominent artwork along Colorado’s Front Range. His vibrant, expressive murals depict sugar beet workers who helped establish Fort Collins ... or a steer to honor the Greeley Stampede.

And he’s working to create a space for more artists to create more murals. He’s part of the team launching WeldWalls, a brand-new mural festival in Greeley that launches next week.

We were curious about how Armando hopes to grow the public arts scene in Colorado – and how he got started painting murals in the first place.

He joined host Erin O’Toole to share more about his unique career, and what he hopes a new outdoor art festival will bring to Northern Colorado.

WeldWalls mural festival takes place September 17 – 21 in Greeley. Full schedule here.

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In The NoCo

KUNC's In The NoCo is a daily slice of stories, news, people and issues. It's a window to the communities along the Colorado Rocky Mountains. The show brings context and insight to the stories of the day, often elevating unheard voices in the process. And because life in Northern Colorado is a balance of work and play, we celebrate the lighter side of things here, too.

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Erin O'Toole

As the host of KUNC’s new program and podcast In the NoCo, I work closely with our producers and reporters to bring context and diverse perspectives to the important issues of the day. Northern Colorado is such a diverse and growing region, brimming with history, culture, music, education, civic engagement, and amazing outdoor recreation. I love finding the stories and voices that reflect what makes NoCo such an extraordinary place to live.

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Ariel Lavery

Ariel Lavery grew up in Louisville, Colorado and has returned to the Front Range after spending over 25 years moving around the country. She co-created the podcast Middle of Everywhere for WKMS, Murray State University’s NPR member station, and won Public Media Journalism awards in every season she produced for Middle of Everywhere. Her most recent series project is "The Burn Scar", published with The Modern West podcast. In it, she chronicles two years of her family’s financial and emotional struggle following the loss of her childhood home in the Marshall Fire.

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Brad Turner

Brad Turner is an executive producer in KUNC's newsroom. He manages the podcast team that makes In The NoCo, which also airs weekdays in Morning Edition and All Things Considered. His work as a podcaster and journalist has appeared on NPR's Weekend Edition, NPR Music, the PBS Newshour, Colorado Public Radio, MTV Online, the Denver Post, Boulder's Daily Camera, and the Longmont Times-Call.

See stories by Brad Turner