If there’s one thing Julie Raymond has learned about her hometown since starting Art in Uncommon Places in 2006, it’s that San Angelo doesn’t hold back in terms of time, talent and monetary donations.

That kindness has been the heartbeat of AIUP and its quest to put San Angelo on the map. “We want San Angelo to be seen as an artistic community,” Raymond said. “And we want people to see the graciousness and generosity of the city.”

AIUP is the force behind a plethora of prominent art pieces in some of San Angelo’s most public spaces, including the Red Arroyo Trail, along the Concho River Walk, The Bosque, and Firefighter’s Memorial City Park. The pieces range from mosaic tile benches and tuffets, to life-size wire men and totems, to tiled vehicles including a fire truck, Volkswagen Beetle, and old pickup trucks. Other notable projects include the nation’s first mile-long glow stone path on the Red Arroyo Trail granted by the San Angelo Health Foundation, and $20,000 worth of LED lights on the historic Lone Wolf Bridge donated by Principle LED.

Raymond and Sue Rainey founded AIUP in 2006. “We wanted to bring art to the people,” Raymond said. “We got a donated warehouse and donated material and started.”

Attorney Mark Carlton encouraged the women to make AIUP a nonprofit so that it could apply for grants, and Jorge Ellis, founder and CEO of Timeclock Plus, made a generous donation to help establish it as a nonprofit. Five years ago, AIUP moved into a 6,000 square-foot space at 701 S. Irving St. Much of the work on its projects (approximately three to four a year) takes place at its headquarters.

To bring each piece to fruition, AIUP partners with various city departments and businesses, as well as countless local artists and volunteers. “Every dime donated goes toward materials for pieces that we donate back to the city,” Raymond explained. “We have a think tank of people who help us create.”

"We wanted to bring art to the people." - Julie Raymond

For Raymond and Joy Thomas, AIUP’s CEO, the organization is a labor of love. The women are its only full-time staff, and neither collects a salary for her work. However, Raymond and Thomas rely on a “powerful” board of women, she said, and – when undertaking major projects – they put out an all-call request for volunteers.

For the tiled fire truck, “We set aside three days, and we had 30 volunteers signed up every two hours,” Thomas said. “People took ownership of their little section, and the project was finished in two days rather than the three planned days. The event was fun and the result was an amazing piece of art with an overwhelming support of 180 volunteers.”

The glow stone path was another herculean task that succeeded because of the community’s efforts. The stones had to be shipped from China because the mineral that causes them to glow is not mined in the United States. Under a relentless summer sun, volunteers hand cast the stones into wet cement and covered them with a thin layer of more cement.

Thomas added, “A lot of times Julie and I will reflect and laugh and think, ‘How did we do that?’ It’s truly amazing.”

The struggle of making the impossible possible is real – and worthwhile.

“Nothing makes my heart sing more than driving by the fire truck and seeing kids climb all over it,” Thomas said.

“People are drawn to the art,” Raymond mused. “That’s the gift we have been able to give to the city.”

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