Austin has always been a breeding ground for the creative community. If you grow up anywhere near Texas’s capital, and you’re a creative, Austin is where you go. Austin FC wants to help to continue to amplify and cultivate creatives in the area.

ATXFC strives to empower the local artist community, while bringing awareness to art programming throughout the city. The Club will be doing so through the ATXFC Artist Initiative platform. In 2021,

Austin FC will work with over a dozen Austin-based artists on projects, including a rotating mural at Q2 Stadium, permanent murals at St. David’s Performance Center and Q2 Stadium, consumer products, and a match poster series.

The mural in the St. David’s Performance Center is already completed and was done by local artist

Will Hatch Crosby. He is one of many local artists that the Club will help to elevate with this program.

“The ATXFC Artist Initiative tells me that Austin FC is serious about collaborating with the creative community of Austin to develop and define the identity of the organization,” said Crosby. “The two intertwined oak trees in the Austin FC crest and in my mural represent the connection between the team and the city, and the Artist Initiative is an amazing way to grow this connection through unique murals, posters, and other artwork that showcases the diverse voices of Austin artists.”

There are also two murals already completed in Q2 Stadium, with a third rotating mural at the Northeast entrance of the stadium to be completed before the home opener on June 19. The concept of a rotating mural gives the Club opportunities to maximize the number of artists and perspectives amplified via the platform..

“We want the creative community to see Austin FC as a catalyst for their work and their impact on this community,” said Senior Vice President, Marketing, James Ruth.

Artists are free to interpret the Austin FC identity any way they want as the Club is giving range to express themselves.

“The arts are truly woven into the cultural fabric of the city,” said Vice President, Community Impact Kaitlin Swarts. “When we think about how we as a club want to positively impact the City of Austin, we want to protect and promote the things that make Austin unique and special and the arts are undeniably one of those things.”

Part of the program will also benefit local non-profit Creative Action, which is working to help cultivate the next generation of artists. Austin FC will work with Creative Action to feature round-up contributions in the Verde Store and offer the opportunity to ATXFC artists to work and mentor students from the program.

"Austin is a city full of creative artists and thinkers, which is a core part of the city's identity," said Karen LaShelle, Executive Director at Creative Action. "By bringing local art into the stadium, Austin FC is celebrating our local artists and the collective creative spirit that makes Austin so wonderful."