Acrylic on Stucco

Approximately 1000 sq ft

2025

I was invited by Old City Artists to lead the team to re-paint this historic mural in downtown Springfield, OR. From OCA:

“In 2015, Old City Artists was commissioned by @cityspfldoregon to design and paint a tribute mural honoring one of Springfield’s most iconic hometown heroes, the late Ken Kesey. @playingerik and @wvcolor were given personal photos and stories from Kesey’s closest family and friends, and asked to create a mural inspired by his own words:

“The job is to seek mystery, evoke mystery, plant a garden in which strange plants grow and mysteries bloom. The need for mystery is greater than the need for an answer.”

The original mural, painted in oil-based enamels, was unveiled in late summer of 2015. Within just four years, however, the red and orange pigments began to fade, and sections of the mural showed early signs of failure. Rather than patch repairs, the decision was made to repaint the mural entirely—this time using high-quality acrylics, a more durable and lightfast medium, despite the added challenges for painting photorealistic work.”

It was a pleasure to work on this mural created with so much history and love.