| Community Mural "Dreaming About Inventions" |
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| Written by Becky Smith |
| Wednesday, July 15 2009 11:05 |
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A large mural will soon grace downtown Butler and two interns assigned to the Butler Downtown initiative are spearheading the project. Kristy Nyland and Amy Chow have designed a mural for the Butler County Ford Annex Building on West Wayne Street as part of an internship under the supervision of Butler Downtown’s Main Street Manager, Becky Smith.
The internship program is directed by the Pennsylvania Downtown Center. The PA Downtown Center Internship Program utilizes the skills and enthusiasm of college students to complete community enhancement projects during a 10-week period (June 1 - August 7, 2009). These projects encourage community members to participate in enjoyable activities, such as painting a mural, while offering students a unique work experience.
The PA Downtown Center Internship Program is supported by: PA Department of Community and Economic Development (DCED) Keep Pennsylvania Beautiful The Pennsylvania Horticultural Society City of Philadelphia Mural Arts Program The program is running successfully with local support from: Ms. Cathy Glasgow and Butler County Ford Mr. Brian McCafferty and Kenmac Rentals Mr. Jonathan Dreher and Dreher Garden Design Mr. and Mrs. Larry and Ann Morrison Convenant Presbyterian Church Mrs. Colleen Ramsay Hoesch The Associated Artists of Butler County The Butler Transit Authority ARMSTRONG Natili's Restaurant The Butler County Chamber of Commerce Mr. Joe Gray Mr. Jeff Weber Mr. Ian Thomas Kristy Nyland is from Ebensburg, PA and a graduate of Edinboro University. Amy’s hometown is Nashua, NH and she will be a senior at Messiah College in Grantham, PA. “Kristy and I are very excited to be here in Butler. It is an incredible feeling to see our artwork go up on the wall and to know that the present and future communities of Butler will be influenced by it. We hope the art will capture the imagination of people in Butler and inspire them to do great things.” says Amy Chow. “We are very excited to contribute our skills to Butler and have the community involved in the entire process.” Kristy Nyland explains. The mural’s theme is "Dreaming About Inventions" and the transportation and the automobile history of Butler. The property owner, City of Butler Planning and Zoning Commission, City Council, and the Butler Downtown Board of Directors and Design Committee have reviewed the design with the interns. Following suggestions from these entities, Amy and Kristy completed a lot of research at the Butler County Historical Society as well as the Butler County Federated Library and County Courthouse. The most exciting part of this project is that the community can participate in painting the mural – no drawing or painting skills necessary. The mural will not be painted directly on to the wall; instead, the mural design will be traced onto 5 by 5 panels of parachute cloth, and members of the community can have a hand in completing the mural in a “paint by numbers” method. The 5 by 5 squares will be transferred to parks, churches, businesses and other places around the city. This allows the interns to bring the panels anywhere and get the entire community involved, even when the weather is not cooperating. The interns are also holding two open paint days for the public on July 22nd and 23rd from 12pm to 6pm at the Arts Center (344 South Main Street). Click here for more info! Butler Downtown would like to thank everyone whose help and contributions are making this project a success. If you have any suggestions or questions, please feel free to email Amy and Kristy at
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or call (724) 256-5769. |
| Last Updated ( Wednesday, July 15 2009 12:11 ) |
