A 16-year-old drew what freedom looks like: a hiker on the South Rim, looking out at blue mountains and a sky full of swallows. 100% of profits go to the artist and the ArtPrenticeship program.
We teamed up with Creative Waco's ArtPrenticeship program, which gives Waco-area high schoolers paid, real-world creative experience. We gave them a brief and a blank canvas, and asked them to design what the outdoors means to them. One design would become a real piece — and 100% of the profits go to the artist and the program. That's the Mano Libre Award. Learn more about the program at creativewaco.org.
Out of all the submissions, Adam's design is the one that stopped us. He's 16 and has been drawing for as long as he can remember, starting with medieval dragons. He's loved the outdoors since he was a little kid, camping and hiking with his dad, and one day hopes to hike the Pacific Crest Trail.
For Adam, being outside isn't a hobby. It's where he feels most alive — and what he's most afraid of people missing out on.
"When you're outside, you feel like you're really alive."
"I want people to look at it and associate being outside with freedom."— Adam, on the South Rim design
"I went hiking with my dad up in Big Bend — the South Rim Loop. When you get up to the top, you look out and it's blue mountains as far as you can see, and swallows flying all around. That feeling of freedom is what I wanted the design to capture."
Adam based the whole graphic on that trip, because when he thinks of the Texas landscape, he thinks of Big Bend. The backpacker in the print is him — looking out over the ridgeline, looking for that same feeling.
Ships in approximately 2–3 weeks · Also available in-store at The Bear Mountain, Waco, TX · 100% of profits go to Adam and the ArtPrenticeship program.
