The mural looked like this when I arrived in Ivanhoe (photo from the end of the previous painting day—I arrived early enough that the light wasn’t yet on the mural.)
After talking to an old friend who remembered more details than I, I added a hint of a door on the porch of the old auditorium. (Please excuse the poor quality of the After photo!)
Then I added orange blossoms. These are only important if you are up close and inspecting the mural; they are irrelevant if you are riding a fast horse.
Next, I flailed around for a while, trying to figure out where to work next. The idea that I might finish had me a little wound up, wondering if it was possible, wondering how to prioritize. The rooster rose to the top of the list—all those colors!
Here are the feet, before and after.
Next, I sat on the ground, now redwood chips rather than mud, and began the quail.
I stood back, studied the mural while visiting with my cousin on the phone, and decided that the blue sky in the Twin Buttes inset was too blue, too flat, too perfect.
Okay, now let’s look at the whole thing. This was a quick-quick-quick-before-the-tree-shades-it shot.
Some more staring and thinking brought me to the conclusion that despite simplifying the packing label, I needed to not abbreviate Klink to Klink Citrus; the name was Klink Citrus Association. And since I couldn’t figure out how to legibly paint “Tulare County, California” on the wall’s rough surface, I simply added “Ivanhoe.”
Throughout the day, I touched up a few more things, brightening the arms of the wind machine, tightening up the edges of the smudge pots, closing up gaps around some of the insets, putter, putter, tinker, tinker.
Enough, already! I signed it. Even with the guidelines of the bricks, my name went crooked. YOU TRY WRITING YOUR NAME WITH A PAINTBRUSH WHILE LYING ON THE GROUND!
Okay, one more photo before it was completely finished but also before the shadows hit it.
One last look.
I loved working on this mural—the commute, the ease of not working on ladders, the subject matter, the neighborhood, being at the library of my youth, meeting the various people who stopped by, the roosters, the patrolling dogs and yowling cats, all of it.
THANK YOU, IVANHOE!
P.S. An inside mural begins today, Lord willing, etc. . . if I do begin, it will be on the blog on Wednesday. Tomorrow is a little history tidbit about the mural.
13 Comments
Makes the library look updated and loved again! Hopefully more people with see if anything else is new inside the library:) Such good memories there!!??
No kidding, Melissa, a ton of good memories in spite of the shortage of Nancy Drew books!
Did you let the intern sign it also? Great job!
Kathy, I was torn about letting him sign it. The decision was made when he was absent at the end of the final day.
Cue the confetti (not really, confetti is such a nuisance and not environmentally friendly). Cue the VIRTUAL confetti.
It looks fabulous!
Thank you, Elisabeth! Virtual confetti is certainly more frugal.
I agree with all of the above comments. And one more: your personal revelations of working with a young intern were both fun and added interest to the whole process! What a fortunate young man to have had that experience.
Thank you, Louise! So glad you enjoyed the peek into our interactions. I sure wish I could help him find a job, and I hope to stay in touch with him.
Congratulations, Jana! You finished it!!! It looks SO good! It looks like there’s an orange orchard right there in town, and the ground looks like it just continues from the real earth right into the painting. I think it’s a wonderful attraction for the town and library, and I’m certain that it’ll draw people in. I can imagine people standing in front of it for pictures – I know I would!
Thank you for the great vote of confidence, Michelle! It was a good project, and I hope it benefits that sad little town.
Congratulations–a job well done! All that “puttering” resulted in a class, beautiful, stunning rendition of orchard life in the Central Valley.
Now, I look forward to seeing progress on the inside mural!
The Mural looks really good. Your attention to detail is what makes it spectacular. And the strange way your mind works is fascinating! Lol. We want to go up there to see it and will soon. Congrats, Jana, another job well done.
Thank you Dick! It will be interesting to see if the mural reinvigorates attention and awareness of the library.