CU Boulder Professor Creates 'Stop Hate' Billboard Art

BOULDER, CO — A trio of doves rests above the off ramp from I-25 to downtown Denver — each with its own 'Stop Hate' message, reminding people to hold peace in their hearts.

George Rivera, a local artist and professor at the University of Colorado Boulder, created the billboard art to address hate amid the current political climate, Black Lives Matter and the COVID-19 pandemic.

The billboard will remain up throughout February, which is Black History Month.

“Billboard art seeks to communicate with those who do not necessarily visit art museums and galleries,” Rivera said.

Artists haven't taken full advantage of billboard art, he said.

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“We are living in a time wherein the ethos of American society has given rise to division and hate. We are at the crossroads of sinking into the negative depths of democracy or rising to assert values we cherish,” Rivera said in a statement.

“Hate has consequences. Death can result from hate that is either a physical death (as with George Floyd) or a societal death (as a result of discrimination that limits actualization).”

Rivera founded the artist collective Artnauts in 1996, and has traveled extensively to take art to places of international contention and address social issues.

Before joining CU Boulder’s Art and Art History department, Rivera spent 20 years as a sociology professor. He said his experience in sociology added a heightened social consciousness to his teaching and his ongoing work to bring art to communities impacted by conflict.

“To truly communicate with audiences, art must be understood and be relatable to our own lives,” Rivera said. “My artwork asks us to stop hate from growing and to examine the phenomenon of hate in our own hearts.”