Stripped of monumental scale and outdoor constraints, this exhibition showcases the work of four Omaha muralists—Avry Victor, Thomas Halbur, Anthony Deon Brown, and David Manzanares—to reveal the grit, experimentation, and individuality thriving inside their studios. These smaller pieces are a raw, intimate conversation with the self, exploring heritage, migration, memory, and personal identity.
Viewers can slow down to experience the detail and craftsmanship that usually flashes past on the street; each artist using their distinct visual styles to uplift and honor the people, ideas, and experiences that influence their work.
About the Artists
Avry Victor
Avry Victor is a multidisciplinary artist and designer based in Omaha, Nebraska, creating work that blends bold color with a playful edge. With a BFA in Drawing and Painting from the University of Nebraska–Lincoln, Avry moves fluidly between oil painting, fiber arts, and graphic design, bringing the same fearless energy and curiosity to every medium.
At the heart of Avry’s practice is portraiture. There isn't a heavy, mystical origin story here, she simply believes hand-painted portraits are a lost art, one that deserves to be loud, present, and alive again. Her work centers Black culture and Black faces, filling a gap in fine art where representation has too often been an afterthought. Through vibrant palettes and a painterly touch, Avry’s portraits celebrate identity, beauty, and the everyday power of being seen.
Thomas Halbur
Born in Masan, South Korea, and adopted at three months old, Thomas Halbur was raised in Omaha, Nebraska, where he first discovered his love of art at George Catlin Arts Magnet. Though he grew up with little connection to his Korean heritage, that curiosity eventually became a meaningful part of his artistic journey. Through his work, he celebrates his Korean roots while honoring the family, community, and upbringing God graciously provided, recognizing both as meaningful parts of the story God is writing through his life.
Halbur's artwork blends traditional Korean influences such as Dancheong and Minhwa with the expressive movement of early American animation and the vibrant energy of psychedelic art. By bringing together Eastern and Western visual traditions, he creates colorful, story-driven works that celebrate culture, imagination, and connection.
As a follower of Jesus Christ, faith is at the center of Halbur's life and creative practice. Art serves as an act of gratitude and worship, shaped by the understanding that every good gift comes from God. His work reflects themes of identity, belonging, restoration, and the beauty of seeing oneself through God's grace.
Working primarily with acrylic markers on wood panels, Halbur begins each piece digitally before translating it into layered hand-rendered compositions. Through this process, he continues to explore his Korean heritage while creating opportunities for conversation, education, and connection.
Anthony Deon Brown
Born in Oklahoma, Anthony Deon Brown is a painter now living in Nebraska. Anthony started painting in Fremont while being influenced by visual experiences outside the home: cartoons, classical art and observing the people around him. The memory of all these things help shape his imagination and ideas about color and composition.
Deon continued testing his abilities on small canvases, quickly moving to painting large scale murals in patrons' homes. He then scaled up even further in his mural journey by putting his mark on buildings in Fremont and Omaha.
Deon eventually found his way back to the canvas. Focusing on commission work, art shows, and expressing his own mind and ideas, he paints hyper-surrealistic imagery in acrylics.
His work can be appreciated in galleries, and large scale walls due to the fact (he believes) that nature, the human figure and colorful animals can be appreciated universally.
David Manzaneras
David Manzanares is an Indigenous Oaxacan and Chinanteco artist whose multidisciplinary practice includes large-scale public murals, sculptural installations, and community-based arts education programs. Now based in Omaha, Nebraska, his work is shaped by Indigenous cosmovision, migration histories, and the reciprocal relationships between humans and the natural world.
Through color, symbolism, and collaborative processes, Manzanares builds spaces of belonging—places where memory, identity, and the land come into conversation. His art seeks not only to represent communities but to uplift and honor them.
Manzanares collaborates extensively with Indigenous, immigrant, and refugee communities across the Midwest, using art as a vehicle for cultural visibility, social connection, and collective healing. His projects often combine traditional symbolism with contemporary aesthetics to create public works that reflect resilience, identity, and the landscapes we inhabit.
