The Next Mural Project
The Next Mural Project
Artist Alex Derwick is Returning to Olean with “Community Sports”
Photos/Renderings Courtesy of the Tri-County Arts Council
What does community actually mean? By definition, it is a group of people living in the same place or having a particular characteristic in common. But that’s a textbook answer, not a real life one.
Community is a part of who we are. It’s where we grow up, who we grew up with, who our parents, and maybe us one day, will raise our families with, the place where our roots were planted. It should mean a great deal to all of us, which should encourage the people of our communities to keep it clean, beautiful, inclusive and safe for everyone. No one understands that more than the Tri-County Arts Council (TCAC) in Olean, NY.
Located at 110 W. State Street in Olean, NY, TCAC is a hub of artistic interaction, hosting classes and displaying local art for everyone to see. Then they had a great idea: Not everyone can come down to view the art, so why not bring it to the people and beautify some local landmarks at the same time? Thus the public mural project was born.
Mural #1: The Heart of Olean
Two years ago, artist Meg Saligman worked on a project that encompassed all four sides of the Liberal Arts Center building at the SUNY JCC Cattaraugus County Campus. Her “The Heart of Olean” mural had about 10% of the Olean population working on it with her crew and herself, proudly creating a display based on an American poet but also an Olean native.
“Deep meaning comes for me when people gather together to create something purposeful and beautiful with their hands,” Meg had said prior to her project launch. “Let’s plan for the beautification of Olean while providing an opportunity for open-ended engagement. We invite all to participate and hope this project will be a pilot that will help bring more world class public art to my hometown, Olean, NY.”
Mural #2: “Community Ties”
The following year, artist Alex Derwick brought his mural proposal to the Arts Council’s attention and it was approved to be created last summer and featured on the wall of the William O. Smith Rec Center in War Vets Park titled, “Community Ties,” which featured someone leaning down to help another tie their shoes. Again, members of the community came out to help make this project a realization during a community paint day. It was a beautiful success.
Mural # 3: “Community Sports”
This year, Olean has been presented with a wonderful opportunity AGAIN by Olean native, Alex Derwick, who is planning to create a mural entitled, “Community Sports”. The new mural is planned for the Sports Locker complex’s west-facing wall this summer and will depict various local sports like baseball, basketball and soccer. Alex, born in Olean but now a resident of Baltimore, came out originally to help Meg on her mural project before submitting his own idea. He is greatly looking forward to this year’s project.
Currently, TCAC is looking for businesses and community partners to support their current mural project like for the Heart of Olean Mural and Community Ties in previous years. At the moment they are currently at 40% fully funded for the project starting in June! Like last year, they will be hosting an open Paint Day for the community on or near June 16th, depending on weather.
Looking Ahead
Moving forward, TCAC has set a goal to do at least one mural each year and they are eyeing to complete murals in Allegany and Ellicottville in 2025. The one requirement, per Paula Bernstein, TCAC Executive Director is, “The only thing we’d like is for the artist to make sure their design has community representation. We want them to follow their own inspiration, their own vision, while also incorporating a feeling of connection and togetherness for our local surroundings.”
As you can see, this project is not only beautifying the local businesses and showcasing art in a public forum, it is really about what makes a community great and shows how much we can accomplish when we come together.
If you would like to make a donation or learn more about the project, please contact the Tri-County Arts Council at 716-372-7455 or visit www.tricountyartscouncil.org/public-art-olean-projects/.
