'Absolutely nothing but kindness': New Washington mural's creator appreciates support
NEW WASHINGTON — As a veteran himself, Dean Davis was excited by the opportunity to paint the mural for the village's planned veterans memorial park.
What he didn't expect was the way the community has supported his efforts.
"I honestly hope for the rest of my career that I do murals of this nature for communities like this throughout the United States," said Davis, of Art Farm Ink in Whitehouse. "If I could do that, I would probably be the luckiest man alive, if I could just have community projects like this."
The New Washington Veterans Memorial Park, inspired by a similar memorial on Ohio 4 in Attica, will be built in an empty lot on the village square, at Main and Kibler streets. A billboard at the front of the lot shows the plan for the park site, designed by Bruce Heinlen of Felty-Heinlen Architects and Planners, Inc.
Village resident Dave Riedel and others have been putting funding together for the next phase of the project — building the park — which is expected to cost at least $100,000. They've applied for several grants, and a recent spaghetti dinner fundraiser brought in $6,600, he said.
After fundraising efforts surpassed the $50,000 needed for the project's first stage, Davis started work on the mural Sept. 12. He's expected to finish up by the middle of this week.
"We'll be buttoning everything up," Davis said Monday. "It's going amazing, absolutely amazing. We kept a really good pace even with a couple of mild days. ... I think overall, just the community itself has made such an impact on the way this thing has turned out, being so supportive. I think it's really going well."
'Give people a chance to reflect'
Midday Monday, Davis started painting the lettering on the mural, using a stencil and yellow spray paint to begin adding the names of the communities that are working together to create the memorial — New Washington, Tiro, North Auburn and Chatfield.
"We're very, very pleased," Riedel said Monday. "Everybody's extremely happy with how it looks and how it's going."
Davis said he's glad he was selected for the project. Other artists have painted murals honoring veterans, but "I don't think they put the passion into it that I have, being as it's something to show homage," he said.
"A mural like this gives people a chance to reflect and have that feeling," Davis said. "Being as this is kind of a background scene for the whole veterans park in itself, I think that's going to be just huge to see this thing fully develop."
He worked with park planners to develop some initial concepts for the mural, which Riedel shared on social media to get feedback from the community. That feedback resulted in a third design, which ultimately was selected in a vote by village council.
Davis said he designed the mural's centerpiece medallion, with faces representing the four branches of the armed services, to have more of an "iconic Americana energy." The scenes to either side are intended to reflect a more modern era.
Wall's shape, windows made mural a challenge
The wall itself presented some challenges, Davis explained. It's not a perfect rectangle, for example; and there are two windows near the middle of the wall — where the medallion was supposed to go. He worked with Riedel to adapt the design to the space available.
Davis said he's worked in much larger communities, and on projects with corporate backing. There are always hurdles to work through.
"When it came down to this project, there's been absolutely nothing but kindness, which has probably been the most beautiful thing," he said. "There's been trust in allowing me to execute the piece and seeing my vision come through, all the way to the end, without nitpicking it or worrying about it. And the basic love that everyone has for seeing this thing come together; the appreciation has been ten-fold.
"We were able to work together, but they're giving proper credit where credit is due. And I think that's a huge factor for an artist, to get recognition for what he's accomplished and also to be treated like an artist, and not just some ... tradesman, so to say. I'm not saying that's bad, but it's definitely not the same thing."
Riedel said he's seen the community support, too.
"Everybody's been very supportive of him and helped him out," Riedel said. "He's been really good about it; he's very appreciative of all of the support that he's getting. The community really turned out for him."
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This article originally appeared on Bucyrus Telegraph-Forum: New Washington Veterans Memorial Park mural nearing completion
