Returning students and faculty members walking the halls of the Downtown campus University Center Building might have noticed a change — the walls from the first to the top floor now contain many unique works of art.

“Practical Acts of Peace Building and Mind-Body Wellness,” an exhibition on display until Jan. 11, features artwork from community artists ranging from a middle-schooler to a 90 year old.

The Downtown campus, in partnership with community organizations, created the exhibition to give local artists involved with non-profits the chance to showcase their work and connect students and faculty members with the stories behind the art.

Malissa Geer, co-curator for the exhibition and community engagement liaison for the Phoenix campus, said she felt the exhibition allowed the artists to become teachers.

“The art is a way to invite them to come into our hallways and become our teachers,” she said.

On the first floor of the building, the first visible art piece is a large, brightly colored mural that connects with the theme of the exhibition: mental and physical wellness and the practical acts of peace.

The mural, “Paz en Phoenix,” paz meaning “peace” in Spanish, was created by artists Martin Moreno and Francisco Garcia from Las Artes Youth.

Las Artes Youth is part of Las Artes de Maricopa, a program that provides out-of-school people, ages 16 to 21, with GED preparation and art training.

The work features three separate paintings. The first shows youth releasing butterflies. Another features figures of peace, like Martin Luther King Jr. and Gandhi, over the downtown Phoenix skyline. The last painting displays a bird with paintbrushes in its beak drawing a rainbow containing music notes.

Whitney Hancock, a dance senior with a minor in non-profit leadership and management, helped to install the artwork of the exhibition. She said the mural was situated in the perfect location for students to see and wonder what the piece was about.

“It doesn’t look like another decorative fine arts piece that would just hang on the wall,” Hancock said.

“The mural is filled with symbols,” said Judy Butzine, co-curator and co-founder/co-director of the Cultural Arts Coalition, a non-profit arts organization that co-curates the exhibition.

“Symbols can be a primary means to convey values, ideas and beliefs,” she said.

Butzine said themes of wellness, education, family, nonviolence, mentoring and peace building could be found in the different works of the exhibition.

Each piece of art is accompanied by a storyboard that provides information about the artist, the community organization they are involved with and how to volunteer with the organization connected to the work.

“Through their storyboards, they are our teachers for the semester and inviting us to volunteer with them,” Geer said.

She said that the exhibition allows ASU to reach out to those who might not come to the University, and it connects the school with community.

“The exhibition is truly a generous gift from the community,” Geer said.

The exhibition will be shown in conjunction with the United Nations’ International Day of Peace, which takes place on Sept. 21.

The ASU Downtown campus, the Cultural Arts Coalition and other community organizations will host a public event on the Monday of the Day of Peace in celebration.

The free public event will be held in the University Center and Civic Space Park, with an artist reception and performances by musicians and dancers.

Reach the reporter at lpalmisa@asu.edu.