Pamela Bliss painted this mural of a sailor and woman embracing as part of a whole-building mural she painted on a former firehouse, which is now home to Firehouse BBQ and Blues in Richmond. Submitted photo
Pamela Bliss painted this mural of a sailor and woman embracing as part of a whole-building mural she painted on a former firehouse, which is now home to Firehouse BBQ and Blues in Richmond. Submitted photo
• • •
GREENFIELD — A new mural will soon grace the side of the tall navy blue building that currently houses Family Bike Chain and a variety of other businesses just east of the courthouse in downtown Greenfield.

Indianapolis artist Pamela Bliss — well-known for larger-than-life murals of local icons like Reggie Miller and Kurt Vonnegut — hopes to start painting the mural in June.

The planned design will boast an agricultural theme, paying tribute to Hancock County’s farming roots, and will take up the majority of the 35-foot-tall, 28-foot-wide wall on the east side of the building at 101 E. Main St.

“We felt like agriculture was the right theme to go with because it touches on our roots, not only the past and present but the future as well,” said Chris Sickels, a member of the Downtown Greenfield Mural Committee, which commissioned Bliss to do the work.

The committee consists of several civic leaders focused on bringing more murals to the community. Their first was “A Barefoot Boy,” a colorful creation based on a James Whitcomb Riley poem, painted on a building across the parking lot from Lincoln Square Pancake House. It was painted in 2018 by internationally known Los Angeles artist Andrew Hem.

Sickels, himself a prominent artist, said the committee chose to place the city’s next mural on the tall building at the corner of American Legion Plaza because it serves as a prominent gateway to downtown Greenfield, coming in from the east.

“That building has always been seen as a gateway. It’s one of the facades you see coming into town, so it’s a great place for a mural to welcome people into Greenfield,” he said.

Bliss said she’s still in the process of designing the mural, which will encompass a multi-generational design relaying the county’s past, present and future in agriculture.

“Our hope is the image will create a tribute,” Sickels said. “We’re really trying to find a message that speaks to the agricultural roots of Greenfield, and how those roots are growing into the future of Greenfield as well.”

Actors from local theater groups will serve as models for Bliss, who will also incorporate Hancock County landscapes.

Helping communities celebrate their heritage through art is one of the main things that inspires her, she said.

“Public art can really change a community. It educates, but it also can help a community appreciate itself more,” said Bliss, who is excited about the opportunity to help Greenfield celebrate its own story.

The Hoosier artist said she’s been painting since the age of 2, and has been creating murals for about 25 years. She’s garnered praise for her murals throughout the state, including looming images of local icons Miller and Vonnegut which grace the walls of buildings in downtown Indianapolis.

In Richmond, she transformed a former firehouse into an eye-catching, full-building mural that depicts the building on fire. In Seymour, she painted a giant lifelike tribute to the city’s most prominent native, John Mellencamp.

Creating a mural reflecting a community’s heritage can serve as a great conversation starter and marketing tool for a community, she said. It can also create a snowball effect, encouraging community members to seek out more public art as time goes by.

Sickels said the downtown mural committee certainly hopes the same is true in Greenfield. After facing some delays due to funding and COVID, he’s happy to see the committee’s second mural project taking shape, and he’s thrilled that Bliss is the artist leading the way.

“Obviously her work speaks volumes for itself,” said Sickels, who first saw her work in Cambridge City, where Bliss painted a mural of a racehorse with rippling muscles.

“That’s probably one that made the biggest impact on me and endeared me to Pam as an artist. Her murals have a real flourish to them,” he said. “We’re really excited to have her on board.”

Sickels has long been passionate about bringing murals to downtown Greenfield, where he lives. “I think murals help add a visual texture to the community. We have a visual texture as far as our historic buildings go, but murals add a layer to that and speak on a bigger scale, and hopefully share a bit of identity with people who walk or drive by them every day,” he said.

“Murals can really reinforce what a community stands for, and can help distinguish a community and set it apart from the rest,” said Sickels. “This mural can help Greenfield stand apart from the long shadow of Indianapolis, and hopefully just let Greenfield be Greenfield.”
© 2024 Daily Reporter