University High School senior Roy Kim reached out to Councilmember Agran’s office seeking opportunities for his Access to Art high school group – allowing the group to apply their passion for art in ways to help the Irvine community during the pandemic. Luckily, the historic landmark Atrium Hotel had been looking for an artist to not only beautify a wall of their hotel, but also bring an element of “heart & soul” that resonates with local residents and tourists alike. This felt like a perfect match, and the collaboration began.

Ms. Tracy Newton, director of sales and marketing at the Atrium Hotel said, “When I began my search for an artist, I envisioned a project that would not only make our guests and visitors smile, but would also pay tribute to our wonderful community. This has been such a difficult time for hospitality and many local businesses.”

Newton continued, “We are a family-owned hotel, so partnering with artists in our community was something that really resonated with me on a deeper level. Our hotel was not only the first hotel built in the City of Irvine; it is also across from the Orange County Airport, quite literally the gateway to Orange County. So, the idea of something with ‘flight’ made sense.”  

Roy Kim met with Ms. Newton in April, collaborating over the course of the next few months, leading to the creation of a beautiful mural installation. The mural is entitled ‘New Wave – Let Your Dreams Take Flight.’ We took some pictures with Councilmember Agran’s appointed Community Services Commissioner Jing Sun during his visit with the artists.

Councilmember Agran said, “This collaboration is community spirit in motion. It's been a tough year for us all and seeing the students and business community link up for this project is inspiring."