Professional recommended for city mural

The bare, white retaining walls along South Elm Street in Creston are like an open canvas for Creston: Arts Council.

What do they have planned for this canvas?

Last week, Brian Zachary with Creston: Arts proposed to Creston City Council hiring a professional painter to complete a mural on the white walls. This mural would be a historical timeline with about 10-14 images from Creston’s history.

“UCDA and Southwestern have been building and improving this main approach into Uptown and we wanted to help,” Zachary said. “Murals really enhance the environment and make citizens proud of their city.”

Brian Mullin is the painter recommended by Creston: Arts for this project. The 57-year-old Mullin is a 1975 graduate of Creston High School who now owns a commercial and fine arts business in Corning called Mullin Graphic Communications.

Some Crestonians may remember the 1900-era Summit Lake-themed drawing he did for Iowa State Savings Bank during “Chalk the Town” event on the Fourth of July earlier this summer. Mullin has been a professional artist for the past 35 years.

“I know this hasn’t been approved yet so I have one foot on the brake and one on the gas,” Mullin said. “But, I’m excited for this project as I spent one summer working in the Creston railyard replacing ties and rails, driving spikes and a whole gamut of other maintenance work. I’m intrigued by several other of the images proposed, too.”

Mullin’s fee to complete this project is $6,500 and includes primer, paint and labor. The mural would survive 7 to 10 years.

Zachary requested paying for Mullin’s services with the city’s hotel/motel funds. The council is expected to approve or deny these funds Tuesday when they discuss Creston: Arts Council’s budget.

If approved, Mullin could get started this fall and possibly complete the mural this year. See a list of proposed images for this mural, right. Mullin has been instructed to keep these images simple so they’ll be easier to view when driving.

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Below is a proposed list of images for a historical timeline mural to be painted on the retaining walls on South Elm Street in Creston. These images are in chronological order:

1. Prairie with Native Americans and bison

2. Mormon Trail

3. A steam train

4. Old windmill and farm

5. Summit House

6. Bluegrass Palace

7. Fountain from Rainbow Park

8. Depot

9. Bandshell and Summit Lake in background of Chautauqua Pavilion

10. Iowana Hotel with tuba player

11. The Roundhouse

12. A steamliner train

13. Grain elevators

14. Astronaut (Apollo 7)

15. Greater Regional Medical Center

16. SWCC

17. Hot Air Balloons

18. Fireworks

19. A contemporary Amtrak train

20. Modern wind turbine