West Virginia State University Extension Service and BridgeValley CTC Celebrate History of Montgomery with Public Art Project

11/4/2020

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Contact: Jack Bailey
(304) 766-4109
jbaile19@wvstateu.edu
     
MONTGOMERY, W.Va. – West Virginia State University (WVSU) Extension Service has partnered with BridgeValley Community & Technical College (CTC) to create a public art mural in Montgomery, West Virginia. Community members are invited to contribute to the painting of the Montgomery History Mural, which depicts images celebrating the town’s rich history.

The mural depicts historic photos from Montgomery’s past in a film strip design. Developed on a grid system by WVSU Extension Agent Adam Hodges, the image was drawn out onto a building and is being painted with a system akin to a paint-by-number format, making it easier for community members to be involved.

“With this paint-by-number system, it isn’t intimidating for anyone in the community to come out and paint,” Hodges said. “You don’t have to be able to blend colors or freehand paint, but simply paint inside the lines.”

The format allows for the residents of Montgomery to have a hand in the creation of a lasting tribute to the town’s history and its future.

“A gentleman stopped the other day, got out of his truck, and said, ‘Hey, give me a brush for a second,’” Hodges said. “He wanted to paint a small spot so he can say he had a hand in the creation of the mural.”
That’s the power of public art projects, Hodges said. 

“The benefits of public art projects like this are threefold. First of all, it’s art – it’s a thing of beauty in the community for everyone to enjoy. Secondly, it’s a way to visually honor the history of a community while embracing future potential. And finally, it creates a sense of community in a very direct way, with multiple people coming together to work on a project for the common good.”

The mural is located on a building known as the GRID, an acronym for Generate, Renew, Innovate, Design. BridgeValley CTC launched the GRID concept to combine robust elements of a business accelerator with the creative environment of a makerspace. Plans for the GRID include developing it as a hub for artisans, workshops, and entrepreneurial business ventures. 

Hodges said the mural should be finished in the coming days and weeks, depending upon weather. Safety protocols for the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic limit the number of people who can paint at the same time, so community members interested in contributing should contact Hodges at (304) 610-5655 or visit the project’s Facebook page. 

The GRID is located at 807 2^nd Avenue in Montgomery.

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West Virginia State University is a public, land grant, historically black university, which has evolved into a fully accessible, racially integrated, and multi‐generational institution, located in Institute, W.Va. As a “living laboratory of human relations,” the university is a community of students, staff, and faculty committed to academic growth, service and preservation of the racial and cultural diversity of the institution. Its mission is to meet the higher education and economic development needs of the state and region through innovative teaching and applied research.
 
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