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IN THE NEWS

What's going on at RAS? Scroll to see a history of our art shows, community outreach projects, feild trips, and other cool stuff! 

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Fernando Fula's work focuses on painting portraiture. During this class we had the amazing opportunity to see his studio space here at Western Avenue Studios! We are grateful for this community for showing our students their work spaces. 

Guest artist Fernando Fula joins us during Drawing & Painting class for a portraiture lesson!

Nov, 2024

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We are beyond thankful for our great skilled neighbor Wendy James! Her years of expertise has helped Refuge in many ways when it comes to ceramics. During this class, Wendy came as our guest artist to show us how it's done!

The wonderful Wendy James visits our Ceramics class for a wheel-throwing lesson!

Oct, 2024

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Huge thank you to the City of Lowell for giving our students these amazing opportunities to bring art to the community!

Thank you Daryan for putting this together! 

Refuge intern Daryan Kong hosts community canvases for Mini Gallery Opening in Centralville riverwalk.

Oct, 2024

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Our Middle Schoolers had a blast learning the techniques and process of making Geli prints, with the guidance of guest artist Dave who is also a part of our Western Avenue Community of Artists!  

Guest artist Dave visits our Middle School Class!

Sep, 2024

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This event was also a joyful part of our 10th Anniversary celebration, as well as a milestone marking our recent relocation upgraded studio space.

We are in forever gratitude for The Theodore Parker Foundation!

Theodore Parker Foundation Hosts Gallery reception for student's work of Spring Semester '23

Sep, 2024

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We’re thrilled to announce that Refuge is now officially a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization! 🎉

Your support was key to the success. Thank you for choosing Refuge! 

Refuge Art School becomes non-profit! 

Sep, 2024

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Gormley's Cafe hosts Gallery for our student & Middle School Instructor Alice Spiller.

Alice has been with us since 2020, she is an amazing artist expanding her skills and focusing on painting. 

Refuge student & intern Alice Spiller hosts first ever solo gallery showing at Gormley's Cafe!

Aug, 2024

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Many of the students that were a part of this mural were also Stoklosa students.

Director & founder of Refuge Art School was also a part of this mural and the arts teacher at the Stoklosa for these students. 

"Urban Healing" Our 3rd and final mural of the 2024 season! A real full circle moment.

Aug, 2024

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Refuge Art School successfully hosts their yearly summer fundraiser! Take a peek at this year's festival and all the cool activities we had!

Huge thank you to our community who came through to support.

Refuge Art School Summer Fundraiser 2024

Aug, 2024

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This special highlight celebrates Refuge Alumni Danielle Wilson and Shannon Infantes, who managed the completion of the “Bridging the Tracks” mural during their senior year of high school. 

Enjoy this video of the installation & don't forget to check it out!

"Bridging The Tracks" mural found its forever home at Western Avenue train tracks crossing.

Aug, 2024

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Check out these barrels led by our studio intern, student & program manager Maritza Flores. 

Each barrel representing a neighborhood in Lowell.

Refuge Art School collaborates with the City of Lowell for Public Art!

Aug, 2024

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This cute reel captures our very first Art Show in our new studio space! 

Much gratitude for everyone who came through to support Refuge Art School and its students!

Refuge Art School hosts Spring Semester Student Art Showcase in new studio space.

June, 2024

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Gabriel Pereira has been with us since 2021. Showing his passion for drawing and sculpture. He is an amazing artist and sculptor! 

Currently he is enrolled at UMASS following his passion for art and interning at Refuge. 

STUDENT HIGHLIGHT! 
Meet Gabriel Pereira.
 

June, 2024

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Kaila Pinales is a very talented artist and painter, in his first semester at Refuge he made sure to show us his skills!

take a moment to admire this painting he worked on during our Spring Semester 2024.

STUDENT HIGHLIGHT!
Meet Kaila Pinales 

May, 2024

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Enjoy our recap reel of our visit to Jean Winslow's art studio for her popular and one-of-a-kind soul mapping workshop! This was a very healing and artistic learning experience for all of us. We are very grateful for Jean and this opportunity. 

Jean Winslow hosts soul mapping workshop for Refuge Art School.

April, 2024

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Take a look at this short video of our new studio space!

Take a look at our very first virtual tour of our new studio space!

April, 2024

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Refuge Art School participates in Lowell's  Winterfest 2024 and 3rd Youth Mural Compeptition and wins 3rd place!

Click in the link to see the awesome results, this year's theme was "My Lowell"

Refuge Art School Students Participates in the 3rd Annual Winterfest Youth Mural Competition and Wins 3rd Place!

Feb, 2024

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Refuge hosted a a ceramics Valentine's Day workshop. 

Watch some of the lovely pieces students made!

Refuge Art School's Hosts a Valentine's Day Ceramics Workshop!

Feb, 2024

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Refuge Art School started spring '24 semester. watch some cool reels of the first classes! 

Refuge Art School successfully starts Spring '24 Semester!

Jan, 2024

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Refuge Art School Collaborated with artist Skribbles to host a live painting night with community canvases!

It was a blast and the community had lots of fun! We love to see art uniting our community. 

Refuge Art School Students Live Paint at Lowell City Hall!

Jan, 2024

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We are super grateful with the community of Western Avenue Studios for making this open house and library memorial opening happen!

Special thanks to the Silk family for showing up, Jim Silk will always be remembered and loved by our community!

Refuge Art School Hosts an Open House and opens Jim Silk Memorial Library

Jan, 2024

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Refuge hosted a due art show! With two of our alumni's pieces of artwork being showcased we hope to make this a thing for students in the future!

"Less Peaceful" - Mar & Dar Duo Art Show at Brew'd Awakening Coffeehaus

Jan, 2024

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Once again we are thankful for the support shown during these exciting times! 

The City of Lowell hasn't failed to make us feel seen and valued as a community. Thank you for supporting arts as a civil right!

Refuge Art School Receives 33k Grant from the City of Lowell

Oct, 2023

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After a great summer Refuge Art School finally kicked off Fall semester.

Check out our Instagram for more content of how it's going!

Fall 2023 Classes Begin!

Sep, 2023

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Our dear student Daryan Kong got to show her amazing piece from our spring semester at Brew'd Awakening Coffee Hous!

So proud of her talent and where she has come.

Refuge Art School Alumni Hangs Artwork at Brew'd Awakening Coffee Hous

Sep, 2023

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We were super excited to start running classes on our new space! 

Middle School art camp was so full of magic and joy thanks to our amazing instructors.

Summer 2023 Art Camp Begin!

Aug, 2023

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We hope everyone had a great time during our 10th Year Anniversary Fundraiser! 

Thank you to all the amazing volunteers who stepped up to get dunked tanked for a good cause!

Refuge Art School Hosted 10th Anniversary Fundraiser Event at Western Avenue Studios

Aug, 2023

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Thanks to the Silk family! They have helped us close our fundraiser by matching us with the Theodore Edison Park Foundation. 

We are forever grateful for the consistent support from our comminty!

WA Community Member Susan Silk Helped Refuge Meet our Match with The Theodore Edison Parker Foundation

Aug, 2023

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Making this window mural for our Folk Festival was such a blast! 

We are thankful for these opportunities that keep our students skills in practice!.

Refuge Art School Alumni Make Mural for 2023 Lowell Folk Festival

July, 2023

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Feeling appreciated and grateful for the city of Lowell!

This funding will help support our youth's community's art education and that is simply AWESOME!

Refuge Art School Receives 30k Grant from The City of Lowell

July, 2023

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We're so excited to wrap up this cosmic mural with the Stoklosa Middle School! 

This took us only about a month and we might come back in 2024 for more!

Refuge Art School Interns X Stoklosa Middle School Students Mural

June, 2023

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Take a look at some of the Featured art work from this semester!

 

We are so proud of our talented students and their themes surrounding Contemporary Art!

Refuge Art School x MCC Students Final Presentations 

Apr, 2023

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We had a blast today at the Camberville Asianfest!

Our students were tabling and some art was being sold!. Highly recommend to catch urban_khmer_ballet !!

Refuge Art School in 2023 Cambridge Sommerville Fest

May, 2023

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We had such a blast during this mural competition! 

We are happy our students came through to support Refuge and show their talent!

Refuge Wins 1st Place in the 2023 Winterfest Mural Competition

Feb, 2023

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We hope everyone had an incredible time at WAS open studios and our winter art show and fundraiser!

Student and instructor work was displayed and two live art raffle sessions were held. 

Refuge intern Sophia Mirabal for Mayor of the Day!

Dec, 2022

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We hope everyone had an incredible time at WAS open studios and our winter art show and fundraiser!

Student and instructor work was displayed and two live art raffle sessions were held. 

2022 Winter Art Show & Fundraiser

Dec, 2022

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Our 'Night Before Halloween" bash was a blast! 

Students, staff, and guests came with thier best costumes and enjoyed snacks, contests, and a game of manhunt at WAS.

Halloween Party 2022

Oct, 2022

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our MCC portfolio students had the great opportunity to travel to the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston and see the exclusive Obama Portraits painted by Amy Sherald and Kehinde Wiley.

MFA Obama Portraits MCC Trip

Oct, 2022

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Our summer 22' Mural Crew' latest work.. found at the Bike Connector, Lowell MA. 

We are thrilled with the outcome, and even more thrilled to highlight the Connector's cool mission: making transportation accessible to everyone. 

Lowell Bike Connector Mural

July, 2022

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Our awesom Refuge team, including students Navaeh and Nophea, as well as Alumni Daryan and Maritza, worked to paint the first LGTBQ inspired multicultural lending library in Lowell! Thank you to Sate Rep. Vanna Howard and Howard Amidon for their support and trust in our team to help make this vision come to life.

Painting 1st LGBTQ+ Inspired Lending Library

June, 2022

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Check out another fun field trip from out Watercolor class, headed by instructor Ashley Eisenman! 

 

This time students the Isabella Gardner Museum in Cambridge MA, a great oppurtunity to see some beautiful art in a beautiful museum on such a beautiful day 

Field Trip to Isabella Gardner Museum

May, 2022

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It was great seeing students and alumni representing Refuge and their personal artwork at the AAPI event in Cambridge this May! 

A beautiful day to celebrate the lives, and traditions of people across Asian and the Pacific Islands. Proud of our artists!

AAPI Event in Cambridge, MA

May, 2022

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Another successful Art Exhibition to wrap up our eventful Spring semester! 

We love the work that has come out of this semester and cannot wait to see what comes out of our summer courses! 

Spring Art Show Exhibition

May, 2022

The mural competition at Winterfest was a very exciting and inspiring event! The refuge mural crew killed it with their painting skills, strong composition, and their positive collaborative work with one another.

We are proud of their collective voice and ability to acknowle the current state of the world.are rockstars!

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Mural Competition at Winterfest

Feb, 2022

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Six lucky students from our Watercolor class got the chance to take a Surrealistic Painting class with instructor Dahlia Raz! 

Field Trip to Boston With Dahlia Raz

Jan, 2022

Watch our administrative assistant and studio manager Chummeng Soun make his work and voice heard in the community!

He talks about the importance of recording our experiences and cultural traditions of our ancestors, BIPOC representation, and more. 

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Refuge Admin Chummeng Soun on Vital Voices

Dec, 2021

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Students showcased their hard work from the recent semester in this year's Holiday Art Show. Guests were free to observe and purchase these creations, and roam about Western Ave Studios. 

The same art, merch, and prints prints are available on the Refuge website. 

Refuge Holiday Art Show

Dec, 2021

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Our collaboration with Women Working Wonders Fund was mentioned in the Lowell Sun!

Check it out HERE !!

Refuge Lowell & WWW featured in Lowell Sun

Oct, 2021

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We celebrated the profound representations of Latinx culture  by the talented David Zayas and Evaristo Angurria as well as the collaborations made with Beyond Walls of Lynn, Project Learn, and ArtUp Lowell. 

Go check out these beautiful murals on Market Street in downtown Lowell. 

The Mural Project Celebration

Sept, 2021

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As the weather gets colder, Refuge Fall Classes are back in full swing! 

Students are hard at work: creating, learning, and having fun! We are SO excited to see what the new semester has in store. 

Fall 2021 Classes Begin!

Sept, 2021

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An art show was held, showcasing student work and featuring films created by those in our Intro To Short-Form Filmmaking class, taught by Henry Marte. This program was supported in-part by the Lowell Cultural Council.

Check out ALL the films on our YouTube channel HERE!

Aug, 2021

Refuge's 1st Film Premiere!

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Awarded 25k from Parker Foundation

Aug, 2021

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The Women Working Wonders (WWW) Fund support local programs that empower women and girls to effect positive change in the community. 

Refuge is one of their 2021 grant reciepients, rewarded $10,000 for Girls and Young Women Creating Community Through Public Art

Watch our "thank you" video HERE !!

Awarded 10k From WWW Fund

Aug, 2021

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Refuge Lowell has worked with Project Learn of Lowell and Beyond Wall of Lynn on the instillaion of Lowell Murals. A project like this will increase awareness of Lowell’s cultural vitality and build community among residents. 

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July - Aug 2021

The Mural Project

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MassArt Boston alumni Momo Schafer from Netflix's Blown Away series stopped by Refuge to offer her energy and wisdom. Her talks gave our students a greater understanding of what it means to be an artist during a pandemic, how to approach our practice in the world and how to create with authenticity and confidence.

Momo Schafer Visits Refuge

Feb, 2021

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With support from Lowell Cultural Council, Refuge students worked to construct a mural titled Elevating Cultural Identity, which can currently be found in its permanent location at Mill No. 5 in Lowell.​ It began as a 2 week summer mural program for middle school artists back in 2019. The theme was: How do you envision your cultural identity as a Lowell artist?

Mural Instillation at Mill No. 5

Nov, 2020

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MASSART, Lesley, UMass Lowell, and SMSA provide portfolio reviews to Refuge Students. Bring sketchbooks, bring confidence, bring questions!

College Portfolio Reviews

Oct - Nov, 2019

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The talented Tory Wesnofske captured a bit of our "Build Something" course that we ran this summer and it ended up being featured in an edition of the Cultural Connection on LTC!  

 

Many thanks to the Mass Cultural Council for making this a reality!

"Build Something!" Airs on Local T.V.

March, 2018

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Summer 2017 Build Something! trailer is now live! 

Summer 2017 "Build Something!" Trailer

Oct, 2017

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Refuge Lowell is Featured in Lowell Sun

June, 2017

The Mural crew has done it again! The Historic Mural at Western Avenue is up! Footage of the mural and it's development can be found below:

Lowell Sun In-Progress Video

Historical Mural at Western Ave.

Dec, 2016

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An awesome recycled material art installation the crew here at Refuge Lowell installed for the 2016 Mill City Grows Harvest Festival at the North Common Park. It is a bottle wall, a sun dial, and a pleasure to behold!

North Common Sundial & Bottle Wall Project

Oct, 2016

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Introducing... "Build Something!"

TBD

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