Public murals have exploded in popularity in the last 50 years. In Ramiro Davaro-Comas’ lecture,?The Importance of Community-Based Public Art, he will trace that evolution for his personal work and process and share how collaboration can transform both artwork and audience. Ramiro Davaro-Comas is an Argentine/American artist with a background in public art and artist residency management. Davaro-Comas is a graduate of the Isenberg School of Management at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, a Americorps VISTA Alumni and a recipient of the Leadership in Arts Management certificate from the University of Massachusetts Amherst. Davaro-Comas has participated in artist residency programs around the world and has painted over 300 murals and managed another 150 mural installations for other artists. He was the director of the Art Students League residency program and Dripped on the Road. Currently, he co-directs Super-Stories with Grace Lang, focuses on arts education and large-scale mural projects. Super-Stories centers the students and community members in every aspect of the work. He has painted 40 murals in the past 3 years with over 10,000 students, community members and teachers. Davaro-Comas consults on public art projects, paints private commissioned murals, and exhibits his work in galleries. Sponsored by Alice and Dean Fjelstul. The lecture is free and open to the public. Image credit: Ramiro Davaro-Comass