A Hidden Valley teen is bringing the desertscape from her backyard to one of Maricopa’s intersections. 

On Wednesday, Anisa Burke, 18, began cleaning and outlining her plans for her traffic box, located on West Smith Enke and North Porter Roads. Named “Friends of the Sonoran Desert,” the art piece has a similar look to her backyard. 

Burke, a Hidden Valley resident, lives in a home near the base of the Table Top Mountains. She is a Maricopa-area resident of 11 years and recently graduated from Maricopa High School with the class of 2023. 

The local teen had continued to outline her plans on the traffic-box with Sharpie on Thursday. She had drawn outlines of a jackrabbit, quail, scorpion, rattlesnake, and plenty of Saguaro cacti.  

This is the second art project Burke has worked on for the city. She painted “Desert Freedom”, the wild horse on the corner of West Edison Road and North John Wayne Parkway. 

Related: “Desert Freedom” placed as tenth wild horse, more on way – InMaricopa 

Burke’s work is part of a public art initiative commissioned by the city. Artists began installing their work on 11 otherwise drab traffic signal control boxes. The installations will continue throughout June. 

Previous: Recent public art initiative a ‘dream come true’ for local artists – InMaricopa 

View a photo gallery from InMaricopa’s Brian Petersheim Jr. and Bryan Mordt.

Brian Petersheim Jr., Reporter
Brian Petersheim Jr., Reporter
Brian became part of the InMaricopa team in October 2020, starting as a multimedia intern with a focus on various multimedia tasks. His responsibilities included file organization and capturing photos of events and incidents. After graduating from Maricopa High School in the class of 2021, his internship seamlessly transitioned into a full-fledged job. Initially serving as a dedicated photographer, Brian's role evolved in October 2021 when he took on a new beat as a writer. He is currently pursuing his studies at the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication. Brian's primary focus lies in covering public safety-related stories. In his free time, Brian finds joy in spending quality time with his family and embarking on adventures to explore the landscapes around him.
Facebook Mail

RELATED ARTICLESMORE FROM AUTHOR