There's a Mighty Mural in progress, on the side of the old Stovall Gin. You can watch it unfold throughout the @mightyrootsmusicfestival this weekend! It's a masterpiece of muralist @Joe.Nix, based on photographs he took of machinery inside the gin and at @hopson_commissary (look closely and you'll recognize ductwork from the gin, and rusted firehose from the truck parked outside Hopson).
This is the first of what's soon to be many works by the Delta Mural Project and Seattle-based incubator @ARTXIV. They bring renowned muralists like Joe here, and work with the community to create art exploring intersections of our culture and history. Their work "shines a light on the past, present & future of the Delta region, providing a path for healing through storytelling and creative energy."
It both honors and preserves our heritage, in a multi-stage process:
Soon you'll also be able to see the photography that inspired this mural -- in the NEW art gallery that @libertylee & @devin_liston are opening at 247 Delta Ave in downtown Clarksdale.
Joe Nix painting the first Delta Mural on the side of Stovall's former cotton gin | September 30, 2021 (c) Shared Experiences USA
Joe is, like Delta farmers, racing Delta weather this week! He says the old gin's three-dimensional siding means it's taken him four times as long as it otherwise would; it's been a unique environment... That makes his work all the more stunning.
The mural and music festival is the start of much more to come, in a Renaissance of creativity and community not only on Stovall Road but throughout the Delta. Drive by Hwy-1 and Stovall Road, and come see change in action!
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