The Outside the Box Project was initiated in 2016 and utilizes art to combat graffiti. Traffic Boxes made up 70 percent of graffiti incidents. The cost of redesigning a traffic box is far less than the amount utilized to remove graffiti multiple times throughout the years. These public art projects not only help save city funds, but they also help build a sense of community ownership and support artists, many of whom are local residents.
Close to half of this project was funded by an SCFD grant awarded to the Thornton Arts, Sciences and Humanities Council (TASHCO). The TASHCO Funds Balance paid for the remaining amount.
About the artist: Martinez explains, "I began taking pictures when I gave birth to my daughter, I wanted to capture every moment of her life. Then I started taking pictures of family members at family gatherings. I was amazed at how photos stop time. I love to go back, and look at those photos from time to time they are such very precious memories [...] however, did not develop the passion for photography until 2007. No one in my life knew that one of the dreams I had was to do photography professionally. I shared that dream with my husband and between him and the Lord they made it happen for me." To learn more about Martinez's work, please visit spiritledphotos.org.