Mural program continues throughout Jeannette
Murals continue to pop up over the city as a result of funds awarded through the Westmoreland Community Foundation's Revitalize Westmoreland grant.
The funds are administered through Westmoreland Community Action, and are strictly to be used for beautification.
According to Tay Waltenbaugh, executive director of Westmoreland Community Action, the funds will work in tandem with the Neighborhood Partnership Program funds.
Completed murals are at the Keynote Cafe on the corner of Fourth Street and Bullitt Avenue, Antique Oddities on the corner of Bullitt and Clay Avenues, and the newest mural is on the south-facing side of Ricky's Classic Pizza II on Lowry Avenue.
All the murals have been completed by different artists from the area and portray distinctive artistic styles that compliment the businesses where they are displayed.
The Keynote Cafe mural, which is on a framed canvas and mounted on the side of the building, highlights music, and was completed by Brian McCall of Greensburg. His home, which is also his studio, the Barking Dog Studio, is on Tremont Avenue in the former Our Lady of Grace Church. The building sports McCall's sculpture in the front square and other pieces of art encircle the building.
“We are getting lots of positive vibes from the mural. The Keynote folks feel we are keeping things ‘fresh and edgy',” said Jill Sorrels, Keynote Cafe owner.
Raphael Pantelone of Crabtree, who is a teacher in the Greensburg Salem School District, completed the mural at Antique Oddities, which is painted directly onto the brick on the side of the building. The mural depicts classic film stars including the Three Stooges, Marilyn Monroe and James Dean.
The newest mural, at Ricky's Classic Pizza, is the collaboration of three local residents.
The mural depicts film stars Marlon Brando, Humphrey Bogart and John Wayne, which were painted by local celebrity portrait painter Jeff Carroll.
“Since we are ‘Classic Pizza,' we wanted to stay with a classic theme,” said Ricky Stough, owner of the pizza shop.
This mural is actually a vinyl banner. Photographer John Howard took pictures of three of Carroll's paintings, and local sign-maker Rob Fejes blew the images up and printed them on a vinyl banner, which was hung on the side of the building.
Kathie Tanyer, a member of the Jeannette Community Action Team, reached out to Stough to see if he wanted a mural as part of team's efforts to get the murals finished and hung.
“I assumed it would be a painting, but Jeff Carroll came up with the idea of a banner,” said Stough, who is thrilled about the mural and also glad that it was such a quick turnaround.
Three more murals are scheduled to go up in the near future at Bella Mimi's Restaurant on Clay Avenue, Country Cuts on Harrison Avenue and Vintage on Clay, a new business opening in the 200 block of Clay Avenue.
Margie Stanislaw is a contributing writer.
