This famous Boise art piece is back, and it’s bigger and better than ever

In the chilly November air, about 30 Boiseans stood on the sidewalk of Capitol Boulevard — many greeting each other with hugs and casual conversation.

The close-knit Basque community looked on with anticipation toward the large mural celebrating their culture fixed to the wall above them.

Boise’s Basque Museum and Cultural Center rededicated the Basque Mural on Tuesday afternoon. The mural, placed on the west side of the Anduiza Fronton Building at 619 Grove St., was originally painted in 2000 by The Letterheads, an international group of artists. They painted mural together simultaneously.

After years of wear and tear, the city of Boise’s Department of Art and History commissioned artist Bill Hueg, a member of The Letterheads, in 2014 to repaint the mural. Through a collaboration of the city and several community donors, a scanned and enlarged version of his work is now on display for all of Boise to see. The original, repainted work is now in the City of Boise’s Public Arts Collection.

Among the crowd, several individuals spoke of the figures on the wall with a tone of familiarity, including Boise Basque community member Marie Jausoro, whose father, Jim Jausoro, can be seen playing the accordion near the bottom of the mural. Jim Jausoro is credited for preserving many of the traditional tunes that accompany Basque dances to this day.

“(The dancers) hummed the music to my dad, and he put it to paper, which was their first written music for the dances that have continued on until today,” Jausoro said. “Everybody knew him — all the Basque clubs in the western United States.”

While many in attendance had these personal and familiar connections to the mural on display, Annie Gavica, executive director of the Basque Museum and Cultural Center, hopes the artwork will serve as a connection between communities like those at the Basque Center and the Boise community at large.

“The Basque Mural has been a sort of gateway to the Basque Block and a wonderful way to share the Basque story with both locals and visitors,” Gavica said in a press release. “Working with Bill Hueg, Boise City Department of Arts and History and all the others in the process has really made the world that much more meaningful for us all.”

This story was originally published November 14, 2018 at 10:23 AM.