Mural artist George Curtis Levi completes last mural of project

This is the final piece in a series of stories on the four artists who painted murals as part of the Cottonwood Square Shopping Center-Jerry Sinor Building mural project.

"Arapaho Family," painted by George Curtis Levi, is the newest mural to enrich the Cottonwood Square Shopping Center. The ledger art mural can be found on the east end of the breezeway that cuts through the center.

Levi is a member of the Cheyenne Arapaho tribe and grew up in northwestern Oklahoma. Art was a constant component of his upbringing and culture, bringing about and nurturing Levi's love for creating.

"Whether it be beadwork or painting,...I had an uncle that was a painter, I had a grandpa that was a silversmith, and we were exposed to it almost on a daily basis." Levi said, "Then we go to our dances. People are wearing traditional garb, moccasins, and it's all a form of artwork to us."

When he wasn't exploring nature, fishing, or hunting, he spent his free time drawing. He describes his summer school sessions as incorporating a multitude of art forms. Visiting artists reinforced his affinity toward creativity through leatherwork, beadwork, fabric design, and painting.

"We're expressive people," Levi said. "We've always expressed our views through artwork. We don't necessarily think of it as artwork,...to us it's just our traditional garb with mountain designs on it and other elements. People say it's artwork now, but it's just what our people did."

Levi had primarily focused his career on being a rancher and farmer with his family in Western Oklahoma. But in 2008, art turned into his main profession after his illustrations in school books caught the eye of admirers. Those books sparked an interest from galleries and art marts that soon began reaching out with requests to sell his pieces. Now Levi does work with the federal government, the National Park Service, the Smithsonian Museum, various universities and educational organizations, and major museums.

Fine line ledger art is the type of art Levi utilizes most often. Ledger art, as a form of traditional Cheyenne Arapaho art, began in the 1840's when scenes of everyday life, traditions, hunting, battles, courting scenes, and special events were recorded using that method. It is described as delicate, flat, expressive, and simple.

"It's almost like taking a picture with our phone now, but they did it on paper," Levi said.

Levi studied the art form extensively through books and by researching other artists. His goal was to appeal to Cheyenne Arapaho people of every age, not necessarily just to collectors, because he expresses tribal history through his work.

To achieve his level of expertise in the field, Levi has spent countless hours viewing old ledger archives at various institutions. He takes photos and examines designs so that his own artwork reflects historical authenticity.

When asked why he chose to paint this particular mural in Niwot, Levi said, "Everything about that piece is about my people and as Arapaho people, they lived and died out on the high plains into the foothills. That area, the Boulder area, is called 'Where the buffalo went up the mountain' in Arapaho."

From Belle Terre Floral, directly across the breezeway, the new mural is in owner Sarah Cioni's view out her front windows. "It's so emotional to me," Cioni said, "that these artists have done their beautiful artwork in this mostly white town."

Levi envisioned the people he painted as a core family group looking off toward the mountains knowing there are things coming, but not fully aware yet what the future holds for them. He wants the painting to show that his people were rooted in the past, looking toward the future, and all throughout, were intensely strong.

The clothing style he painted in the approximately 8-by-8-foot mural is genuine to what they would have worn in Colorado in the 1860's at the time the tribe was forced out of the area. Each design within the clothing has a specific meaning representing mountains, caves, animals, and other elements of power.

Levi said he would like viewers of the mural to know that "the Blue Sky people, known as the Arapaho now, are still here and we're thriving. We're still carrying on the languages, the customs. And that no matter what happened to us back then, we are still here. There are Arapaho people who are lawyers and doctors...everything. We're just like everybody else, but we live in two worlds. We live in the Arapaho world, but we also live in the dominant society as well. It's about being strong, being proud of who we are."

Collectively, the four murals in the project form an eloquent statement. Levi and fellow-mural artist Brent Learned are cousins and members of the Cheyenne Arapaho tribe that once flourished in this area. Levi said when he and Brent come to Niwot, "We're coming home." This is where the bones of their ancestors lie, where their people cared for the land, and their history will forever be part of who they are.

To learn more about George Levi's art, visit, https://glevi.artspan.com/biography , ,https://southerncheyenneart.myshopify.com/, and https://www.spoonflower.com/en/shop?on=fabric&q=george%20levi&availability=ForSale&sort=bestSelling.