Maxbauer Ace Hardware's long expanse of white space along Front Street west of Division in Traverse City always cried out for some kind of embellishment – a sign, a banner, something -- and
Artcenter Traverse City thought of a clever way to do it with the Community Mural Mosaic Project.
The nonprofit Artcenter enlisted Kingsley muralist
Terry L. Dickinson as project director. His murals have adorned the exteriors of buildings all over the state since 1974, including the northwest Michigan communities of Ludington, Petoskey, Roscommon and Grayling. Then the center put the word out to professional fine artists to submit their ideas for a 13- by 50-foot mural that would consist of 2,600 six-inch squares. In a series of art-related events, the public would be invited to buy an aluminum tile for $5, paint it according to the chosen design, and have his or her name engraved in a plaque next to the finished mural.
Among 40 submissions, the jurors selected a version of Traverse City artist
Charles R. Murphy's impressionistic oil painting,
Festival Time, which was used as the 2008 National Cherry Festival's commemorative poster.
Since spring, the Artcenter staff and an army of artists and volunteers have been setting up tables at the Downtown Art Walk, Union Street Art Fair and Cherry Festival, inviting attendees to paint one or more tiles, and after each event, their works are attached to Ace Hardware's south wall. The project is expected to be completed by October.
Upcoming mural-painting dates are July 31, 10 a.m. - 5 p.m., at the Artcenter Traverse City 50th Annual Outdoor Art Fair on the campus of
Northwestern Michigan College; and Aug. 28, 11 a.m. - 2 p.m. at Ace Hardware, 734 W. Front St., Traverse City, 231-946-2140. To volunteer, call Kathy Lienau at 231-941-1806.
Writer: Patty LaNoue Stearns
Source: Artcenter
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