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Mural Mural on the Wall
by Mountain Girl ~ October 31st, 2007. Filed under: Art, Community.
Mt. Washington was the recipient (along with neighboring Allentown) of a Sprout Fund mural this year. The mural is located on the wall bordering the Shiloh Inn parking lot and depicts a cherry tree in bloom.
With community input, artist Gerry Tonti chose to focus on nature and the “green” aspects of Mt. Washington. On the one hand, it signals to visitors that Mt. Washington is a place where you don’t have to sacrifice green space for urban living. Does it function effectively though as a way to draw people down Shiloh Street and hopefully get them to wander onto Virginia and Bailey/Boggs?
I guess that then begs the question, what is a mural? How does it function within a community? Should it have any sociopolitical function at all or should it just be appreciated for its aesthetic value?
I like the fact that the blooms on the tree are not completely realistic. They kind of have a surreal aspect to them. The kids seem to be really interested in it and said “it reminds me of Dr. Seuss”. What do you think?
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October 31st, 2007 at 5:35 pm
wow the mural turned out great! i’m confused though, I thought teh mural was supposed to be interactive and have gears and cranks adn things coming out of it. what happened to that idea???
November 1st, 2007 at 9:49 am
Hi Albert:
I wasn’t really involved in this process, but I believe the idea is for the artist and community to work together. I too heard that Gerry had a different concept initially, but I guess the community didn’t think it was representative of Mt. Washington.
November 3rd, 2007 at 10:37 am
Design by committee.