The Department of Juvenile Services and William Donald Schaefer House youth celebrated the completion of the final panels in a 14-year collaborative project with the American Visionary Art Museum (AVAM) on the LeRoy E. Hoffberger Shining Youth/ Shining Walls. A special thanks to AVAM Co-founder Rebecca Hoffberger and AVAM Project Director Sarah Allen Harper for their tireless dedication to the project and to DJS youth. The young men's work, a permanent collection at the museum, will now serve as roots and wings for the youth.

This multi-disciplinary arts apprenticeship focused on service provision for at-risk youth and juvenile offenders. The project linked master artisans, like Harper, with Maryland's youth, to design, create, and install mosaic exterior walls and a crown to the main AVAM building. Youth apprentices learned how to design and create individual tiles, lay out, set and grout tiles, as well as clean, polish, and install mosaic panels.

This last phase, Phase III, began in 2013 on the west/ Federal Hill face of the main AVAM building. The mosaic walls display a night sky with an artistic Aurora Borealis swirling and glowing iridescent in greens and purples. The top concrete building crown that completes the multi-year project is covered in mosaics and crystals and can be enjoyed from the other side of the Harbor.

Mosaic Unveiling at AVAM Photo Album

Video Highlights and Interviews from the Mosaic Project