Glenwood City Centennial Mural facelift complete

By Cara L. Dempski

GLENWOOD CITY — Residents of Glenwood City chose a unique way to honor the city’s history and centennial in 1982: they commissioned a mural to be painted on the west side of what is now the Glen Hills Professional Building, at the corner of First and Oak Streets.

As of this past weekend, the latest edition of the mural is complete.

The original mural, painted by artist David Marksam, went through a few touch-ups in 2007 at the hands of another artist, Jason Ruhland.

The artist

In 2015, a former Glenwood City resident by the name of Charlene Weeks, noticed the mural was looking ragged, and contacted the city about repainting it. Weeks approximates that she has worked nearly 555 hours on the mural since October 2015 and completed the entire work the weekend of October 29.

“I’ve never attempted one this big,” Weeks stated. “It’s something I’ve always wanted to do.”

Weeks attended Glenwood City schools for kindergarten and first grade, but is a graduate of New Richmond High School. She said she has always known about the mural and admired it, and was looking forward to the opportunity to work on it.

Weeks said she understood the sentimental connection people have not only to the history, but also to the people. She explained a mural like the one in Glenwood City is personal for her and for the people living in the community.

“It’s a small town, you know. You talk to people and they know everybody,” she stated.

Weeks is a graduate of Columbus College of Art and Design in Ohio, and got into large art production after college. She has worked on numerous large projects, but this is one of her biggest yet.

Weeks explained “when they (the city) first started talking about working on the mural, it was just going to be about fixing it.”

What happened instead was a complete makeover, including sandblasting down to the building’s original brick and filling in mortar and cracks as necessary. Weeks started with a blank canvas of white primer from top to bottom along the entire west face of the building. She said it was a challenge and something she loved doing.

“I’ll be happy to be done, but sad to be finished working on it,” Weeks said. “The time just flew by.”

The fundraiser

Joan Bartz, who operates a business out of the Glen Hills Professional Building and spearheaded the fundraising for the most recent edition of the mural, said she was fascinated by how quickly Weeks worked.

In a photograph posted on Facebook, Weeks is seen sketching the main street portion of the mural onto the blank white wall on October 2, 2015. Another posted on October 7, 2015 shows Weeks painting some of the sky.

Bartz said she was worried how Weeks would tackle the project after the wall was cleared of the previous paint and then painted with the white primer base.

“It was pretty scary before she started,” Bartz explained. “This is a new artist, and she said she could do it. We all said, ‘we hope so.’”

In order to reach the high spaces on the wall, Weeks needed a lift to paint at eye level. Rather than the City and Chamber of Commerce footing the bill to rent one, local businessmen John Logghe offered one of his lifts for Weeks’ use. This made the final cost of the work significantly less expensive.

Bartz said, “It would have cost too much to rent one, so we were all grateful he stepped up with the lift.”

It also made Bartz’s fundraising easier, as she only had to raise funds for the payment to Weeks, the sandblasting and coat of primer, and the materials needed for the job. Bartz stated her fundraising consisted mainly of calling people and asking if they would be willing to donate.

“We accepted a minimum donation of $750 from anyone who wanted a family member added to the building,” Bartz explained.

The Glenwood Historical Society was the first to donate. By the time she raised enough money for the job, Bartz had solicited over $12,000 from 31 people who donated anywhere from $10 to $1,000 each.

The painting presents three different views of Glenwood City and the surrounding area, a concept that Weeks maintained from Marksam’s original mural. On the left side of the wall is a view of the Glen Hills Professional Building from the front (Oak Street), the center portion shows the view up Oak Street to the east and the farmland surrounding the city, and the right side shows “Bud’s,” which is where the hardware store is located now.

Faces out of Glenwood’s history adorn the wall. The original painting featured 27 prominent citizens, and the 2007 repair added another three. Weeks’ interpretation included a further nine residents to bring the total number pictured to 39.

Bartz said many people in the community have told her they are pleased with the work Weeks has done on the mural. Weeks made the picture her own in some respects, but wanted to maintain many of the aspects in the previous paintings to provide continuity.

Whereas the 2007 update to the mural was not sealed against weather or damage, the most current mural will have a coat of clear sealant to protect it.

“The first mural lasted over 20 years,” Bartz said. “There was a hail storm just after the 2007 work was finished, so that needed some touch-up work and we never sealed it.”

Bartz said the lack of sealant is likely why the images didn’t last quite as long as the first time. She expressed the hope that by taking the surface down to the original brick, providing a solid primer coat, and then coating the painting with sealant, it will last as long as the first.

The mural will again have a plaque on the Oak Street side naming each of the faces in the painting. Unlike the previous mural, a number subtly painted on each person serves as identification. The numbers will be printed next to the person’s name on the plaque to help viewers navigate the “who’s who” the mural presents.

Bartz said the Glenwood City Chamber of Commerce is hoping to have a “Glenwood Celebrates” event on November 10 to celebrate the completion of the mural and having completed another successful year of county fair and Rustic Lore. Bartz is also hoping the plaque containing the painting’s legend will be ready for installation at that time.

The Chamber of Commerce plans to sponsor a contest and cash prize for anyone who can accurately name all the people pictured on the wall without using the legend. Further details regarding this will be provided as they become available.