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‘Larger than life’ photo murals for Coralville’s 150th anniversary coming in June
‘We really want to celebrate both the history and the current diversity in our community and instill a sense of pride in both of those aspects of Coralville’
CORALVILLE — “Larger than life” photos will go up on buildings around Coralville later this month to celebrate the city’s 150th anniversary.
The wheat pasted murals will celebrate the city’s rich history and bright future — which is the tagline for the sesquicentennial celebration. The murals will be in visible locations in time for FourthFest and when thousands of RAGBRAI riders stay overnight in Coralville at the end of July.
“There couldn't be a better time for all of this, and I think Coralville is going to really shine on the world stage in a way,” said artist Isaac Campbell, who is collaborating on the project with the Coralville Public Library.
Campbell also will be putting up wheat pasted murals in each of the overnight RAGBRAI towns, including Coralville. The bike mural will happen the morning of RAGBRAI, which in Coralville is July 28.
“They're all going to be so visible, and I think people are going to have fun interacting with them,” Campbell said.
Artis Isaac Campbell smiles as he envisions the locations of future murals on the homes of residents who have volunteered for public art on May 25 in Coralville. Geoff Stellfox/The Gazette)
Artist Isaac Campbell takes measurements of the garages of residents who have volunteered for public art on May 25 in Coralville. (Geoff Stellfox/The Gazette)
Wheat pasting is a type of temporary art traditionally used in protests given its ease and speed of installation. Using flour, water and sugar, a paste is made to press paper onto a wall, drying with a strong bond.
This puzzle method of wheat pasting includes large sheets of paper that are pieced together to create one large image rather than a single large poster, Campbell said. Wheat paste murals tend to fall apart in three to six months but can last longer depending on the weather.
Historical photos from the Coralville Digital History Library will be wheat pasted onto seven buildings around town, with each building have its own unique photo.
There will be three murals celebrating the city’s bright future. Photos of students will be wheat pasted on the outside of Northwest Junior High, Kirkwood Elementary and Coralville Central Elementary.
“We really want to celebrate both the history and the current diversity in our community and instill a sense of pride in both of those aspects of Coralville,” said Ellen Hampe Alexander, assistant director at the Coralville Public Library.
Historical walk on June 11
Local historian Rex Brandstatter will lead an Eighth Avenue historical walk at 1:15 p.m. on June 11. Various homes on Eighth Avenue will have wheat pastings on their garage doors for the historical walk.
This will offer a preview of what’s to come with the larger murals.
Eighth Avenue is a significant street in Coralville’s history, said Ellen Hampe Alexander, assistant director at the Coralville Public Library. It was one of the first areas of development and significant families in Coralville’s history lived on this street.
Celebrating Coralville’s history
The “larger than life historical photos” will be a way for people to learn about and celebrate the city’s history, Hampe Alexander said.
Coralville Librarian Wendy Stevenson said she wants to have QR codes or information near the mural about the photo so people can learn more about its significance. Stevenson oversees the Digital History Library and does archival work.
The mural locations will be Chongs Supermarket, Coralville Community Food Pantry, Coralville Public Library, Coralville Recreation Center, Iowa River Power restaurant, Randy’s Flooring and West Music.
Hampe Alexander said the buildings chosen are in a visible, walkable area.
Campbell said the murals will take about one to two hours each to put up, but that can vary depending on the building. Brick buildings tend to be a bit easier because the bricks can be used as guidelines.
Campbell spent an afternoon earlier this year with library and city staff driving around Coralville to identify potential locations for the murals.
“When you put your mural glasses on, you start to see things that you don't normally see: sides of buildings, walls that are in really fun spaces,” Campbell said.
But it’s not quite as simple as first choosing the image or picking the location.
“It's very much in the middle of we're thinking about images at the same time we're kind of driving around,” Campbell explained.
Building owners were contacted to see if they’d be interested in participating. Campbell then put up test murals that served as a “teaser sample” on the side of each building.
The test murals were much smaller than the actual murals. The tests included the 150th anniversary logo along with “Rich History” or “Bright Future.”
Before Memorial Day weekend, Campbell went around to see how the tests held up over the last month. He said the tests were in “really great condition.”
“There's a practical component of testing the building surface. What can we look for? Is it going to hold up in the way that I think it's gonna hold up? But the library also used it for a really great way to promote the project (on social media),” Campbell said.
Students are the ‘bright future’
Campbell said the murals with student photographs are going to be “really moving” and a way to show students that “they are the bright future.”
The murals with student photographs are part of a larger effort called the Inside Out Project, a global art platform that helps communities stand for what they believe in and spark change.
“I think that whether the students realize that yet or not, the fact that they're going to be part of a global community and on a global stage is a really exciting thing,” Campbell said.
There have been various events over the last couple of weeks for students to have their photos taken. Hampe Alexander said the Iowa City Community School District has been a great partner in these efforts.
“It's been so much fun to see how much enthusiasm there is in the community for this project,” Hampe Alexander said, adding how excited students have been to get their photos taken.
‘This is a community effort’
Hampe Alexander, Stevenson and Campbell all highlighted how accessible and collaborative this project and the wheat pasting process is.
Students will be invited to help put their photos up and there will be more volunteers needed. There is a job for everyone, Campbell said.
“This is not a one person job — this is a community effort,” Campbell said. “ … I don't know that there are many opportunities in public art that are quite like that, where you can get people together in this way to really like truly create something like this.”
“You're not watching me do it. You're doing it yourself. You're doing it with me,” Campbell added about the process.
The images from the Digital History Library are already accessible to everyone online but now will be “accessible just driving down the street,” Stevenson said.
Campbell said the efforts from the library to make historical photographs and archives accessible in this way are “really cutting edge.”
“That's why libraries are so great because they already have this mindset of accessibility, of meeting people where they are, making sure that things are available,” Campbell said.
Comments: (319) 339-3155; izabela.zaluska@thegazette.com
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