Beautify Earth was recently honored with the Cultural Tourism Champion Award from California Travel Association earlier this month.
The award highlights the impact on tourism through either performance art or visual arts.
In a recent press release, Misti Kerns, President and CEO of Santa Monica Travel & Tourism said, “Beautify Earth is such a wonderful representation of the creative spirit and innovative thinking that is alive and well in Santa Monica.”
Previous Cultural Tourism Champion winners include San Francisco Museum of Modern Art and Laura Zucker of the Los Angeles County Arts Commission.
The award recognizes an entertainer, musician, event, festival or individual artists in ceramics, painting, printmaking, design, photography, video, filmmaking, architecture or a related institution. The award recognizes an entity or artist significantly impacting the building of the California Brand and visitation through the Arts.
Beautify Earth was founded by Santa Monica resident and Executive Director, Evan Meyer.
“I was once some crazy guy on Lincoln Boulevard painting walls by myself and sometimes with artist friends and one thing lead to another,” said Meyer. “That wall people seem to like, and it got a lot of good traction. From one wall went to another two walls, three, four walls and ultimately leading to projects in New York. “
In his acceptance speech he acknowledges his Beautify Earth team, as they are a huge factor to the organization and really bring their mission to life.
Artists Ruben Rojas, business partner to Meyer’s said “Beautify Earth’s focus has been in Santa Monica with the goal of supporting it to become the first blight free city. We have grown and expanded throughout the country and world organically.”
The City has 50 murals by Beautify Earth, and as the startup location and home to the organization, Meyer expressed his gratitude toward the City and said the City has been extremely supportive through it all.
However, Beautify Earth has expanded their vision by not just painting murals in Santa Monica and Venice, but reaching further locations like Seattle, Brooklyn, Mexico and India.
“As a movement it is important to us to share our mission on a global scale,” said Rojas.
After receiving the award Meyer believes the award is the first step in not just doing global projects, but spreading the deeper meaning, that art creates to the rest of the world.
“Our world needs love, color and inspiration now, not tomorrow, not next year. Beautify Earth is well on its way of getting there,” said Meyer.
Next month Beautify Earth will host a Pico walking mural tour, showing the public the nearly twenty different murals in the Pico neighborhood. The organization will also be working on a few new projects, which will be taking place in Mid City.
“Beautify Earth is a global movement, and it starts here in Santa Monica,” said Meyer.
For more information visit, https://beautifyearth.org/ .
marina@www.smdp.com
