New mural a welcoming sign for Midtown
A mural welcoming visitors to Tallahassee’s Midtown District will be painted on the north wall of 1351 Thomasville Rd. Saturday, 9/19, and Sunday, 9/20 (weather permitting), by the 2015 Community Catalyst “Encompass Tallahassee” team of Tallahassee’s Knight Creative Communities Institute as a kick-off to their SeeTallahassee campaign.
(NOTE: Photo opportunities will be optimal from 1-3 p.m. Sunday, 9/20. In case of rain, painting will be rescheduled.)
The mural, which will be visible to thousands of area drivers and pedestrians daily, launches a series of projects intended to identify and highlight Tallahassee’s landmarks, special interest districts and hidden treasures.
The 14-member KCCI volunteer team, known as EnCompass Tallahassee, is supporting the City of Tallahassee’s new wayfinding signage project, which is installing new more functional, attractive road and location signs to direct citizens and visitors to key area sites.
Aiming beyond the constraints of traditional signage, the EnCompass team has created the SeeTallahassee campaign, which includes not only sense-of-place murals, but also a unique, stylized artisanal map in print and digital form, and an interactive website that will provide information about area locations, features and events.
This multi-faceted campaign supports improvement of local wayfinding systems, invests in arts-based placemaking, and inspires residents and potential residents, particularly students at local colleges and universities, as well as young professionals, to explore hidden gems across Tallahassee’s core districts by showing them unique attributes and landmarks in different districts.
District murals are planned as one part street art and another part wayfinding, according to team member Lucas Lindsey. The murals will present area highlights in a clear, consistent and concise design, offering passersby quick guidance on how to get from Point A to Point B.
The Midtown mural, designed by KCCI team member Stefanie Kiedrowski, is the first of as many as 10 murals to be located in Tallahassee’s special districts. The mural is being painted by Chiara Saldivar of Street Art Tallahassee, with the assistance of EnCompass Tallahassee team members.
Each mural will highlight nearby, primarily walkable locations within Tallahassee’s sense-of-place districts, which include not only Midtown, but also Downtown, FAMU, FSU, Southside, Market Square, Frenchtown, Huntington and Uptown. Murals will highlight the theme and location of each district’s can’t-miss landmarks and will bring small moments of beauty to unexpected place, Lindsey said.
Team member Paige Carter-Smith says, “The promotion of both our developing and well-established districts through a lens of arts and culture creates a true understanding of Tallahassee as a whole and what it has to offer. This project will inform current and potential residents about these unique districts and how together they create a truly diverse city with many opportunities for working, playing and living!”
Paint for the Midtown mural has been donated by Sherwin-Williams, Thomasville Rd.
Midtown sponsors of the mural include: Southern Compass Outfitters, Maddox Horne Law Firm, Flecia Braswell, Drs. Chaney, Couch and Grooters Family Dentistry, and Rogers, Gunter, Vaughn Insurance.
Sponsors and locations are being sought for additional district murals, as well as the artisanal map. For more information, contact team member Gayle Webb, [email protected].
KCCI was created in 2007 and has been annually selecting Tallahassee residents and training them on the economic development concepts related to sense of place and the Creative Class. These Community Catalysts volunteer their time to learn the concepts and implement a project that enhances Tallahassee’s sense of place as a community that would be able to attract and retain the creative class, young professionals and college graduates. KCCI has led a variety of successful programs that have helped create a sense of place throughout Tallahassee while engaging the creative class. KCCI is a program of The Village Square and is funded through private and public donations. For more information, visit www.kccitallahassee.com.