To get involved
For now, people looking to get involved can contact Daviess County EDC at 812-254-1500 and talk to Amber Warden.
A big, flashy expression of the arts, a giant paint by numbers community created mural. That is what the arts organization, Building Deeper Appreciation for the Arts in Daviess County, is proposing in the near future.
The organization, which is an offshoot of the Daviess County Economic Development Corp., in just its second meeting has come up with a plan to not only get the community involved in the arts, but to make a big statement at the same time.
“This is a paint by color mural that the community can participate in. We voted and decided that is what we would like to proceed with,” said Amber Warden with the DCEDC and organizer for the arts organization. “America is going to be celebrating its 250-year anniversary in 2026. The state would like to see a mural from each community during this event with some kind of historical part to it. This gives us two years to work on this and plan things out. The goal is to get it done next year. Hopefully that will give us a chance to find our artist, do the design, set a date and invite the community to come out and participate in the painting.”
To try and reach out to more people, the arts group is looking to involve area students more deeply in the project.
“We talked about having some of the local art students come up with ideas about what they would like to see in the mural,” said Warden. “We have talked with students before and they have expressed interest in seeing some of the historical figures from the area displayed in art-work. We hope to have something like that.”
There have been a pair of murals painted in recent years, both in downtown Washington. Warden says a search is on for the site of the latest mural, that could wind up anywhere in Daviess County.
“This would be for Daviess County. The plan is for us to create an application process that would allow for individuals to apply and donate their wall. It could be a business, a warehouse, or a barn,” she said.
The big project is just one under discussion. There is also a proposal for a project on the old Tolkeim property in the west end, another for some ceramics at Washington High School and something involving the bicentennial bison that has been sitting in the courthouse basement.
While the EDC is acting as a facilitator and organizer for a county-wide organization supporting the arts, Warden says the economic development group wants to see the local arts community take over the work.
“We want to create a name for ourselves and hopefully soon create a Facebook group so that other creative artists can see what we are trying to do and participate,” said Warden. “We want to find individuals that are like-minded in support of the arts. We are willing to support them. We are happy to help with getting organized and marketing. We hope in another year EDC can step back and just take on a supportive role.”
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