Students got a crash course in muralism and spray-painting during a student-run art workshop Friday hosted by a student organization specializing in Chicano culture.

Movimiento Estudiantil Chicano de Aztl?n, a student group, which promotes Chicano culture through art, music and food, held its first ever CulturArte workshop April 23.

Although MEChA has existed as a student group for decades, the CulturArte program is new as of last fall, according to event co-coordinator and UW junior Valeria Cerda.

“We had wanted to start it for a while but were debating on what the most effective method would be, and we arrived at the idea of an art workshop,” she said. “It’s nice because students can come here anytime of the day and feel relaxed as they participate.”

MEChA staff member Dakota Alcantara-Camacho said the event was aimed at all students at the University of Wisconsin and included workshops for screen-printing, muralism and stenciling.

“We are open to all students who are interested in learning about Chicano culture through art,” Alcantara-Camacho said. “Events like CulturArte are a great place to feel at ease but still be immersed in your surroundings.”

Alcantara-Camacho said CulturArte received funding for the event from various donors and is using the space it has as effectively as possible. He said the benefit to student participation in the workshop is that it would break culture barriers and contribute to campus diversity.

Cerda said she was thrilled the event was finally taking place, adding the months of preparation have paid off, and a lot of time and effort have been put into getting CulturArte workshops on the map at UW.

According to Cerda, the workshops began as a collaboration effort with other groups on campus such as sororities and fraternities as well as other student programs, but were not affiliated with CulturArte.

“These groups would come to us and ask for a theme or some type of collaboration. We’d provide our spin on what they wanted, and eventually, word spread about our group, and that is why we are able to have CulturArte now instead of next year,” Cerda said.

Cerda praised the hard work of all of the committed members of MEChA who were able to make CulturArte possible. She said that it is completely student run. From music to art, students proctor each workshop.

“We hope that this workshop today will set a standard for the future,” Cerda said. “Hopefully as many participants as possible will attend. The best part of CulturArte is that workshops are held all week long so this is just the beginning.”

MEChA began as a student movement in Los Angeles in the 1960s. Students were fed up with inadequate schools and being unable to move forward with their culture and the student group was created, Alcantara-Camacho said.

Over time, MEChA spread across the United States and is currently rooted on college campuses across the country.