Walls, buildings decorated with local artists’ creations
They can be found all over town. Some are prominent and easy to
find; others are hidden in out of the way spaces. Sacred Heart has
one. Johnny’s Bar and Grill has one. Chon’s Market at the corner of
4th and Line streets has one. What are they?
Murals.
Walls, buildings decorated with local artists’ creations
They can be found all over town. Some are prominent and easy to find; others are hidden in out of the way spaces. Sacred Heart has one. Johnny’s Bar and Grill has one. Chon’s Market at the corner of 4th and Line streets has one. What are they?
Murals.
Jim Gibson, owner of the Windmill Market shopping complex in San Juan Bautista is hoping a new mural and signage will make his complex stand out and draw more people to his business.
Murals are a unique form of public art that can draw people to an area and even into local businesses. Around Hollister, murals are sporadic. Many local schools have them. One mural near the Briggs Building parking lot serves as a map of downtown Hollister with bright images on each painted street corner.
In some cities, such as San Jose, a portion of funds from capital improvement projects are set aside specifically for public art, according to local architect and Hollister planning commissioner David Huboi. Projects in Hollister are privately funded.
Huboi put together plans for Gibson’s mural project in San Juan.
“Public art is uplifting to the community spirit. It brings people together,” Huboi said. “People can view, interact and appreciate art. The color adds to the ambiance and it lifts the spirit of a community.”
Huboi’s vision for the San Juan mural will celebrate San Juan Bautista as well as serve as a gateway sign promoting the vision of San Juan Bautista. The mural will incorporate images of the Mission, a plow horse and a farmer. He came up with the idea while strolling through San Juan.
Gibson got to know Huboi when Huboi created plans for a new frontage for the Hollister Supermarket complex on Highway 156. Gibson had been playing with the idea of changing his signage for a few years because he wasn’t satisfied with how it looked. He and Huboi discussed the project and Huboi came up with the idea.
“I’m very happy with the images Dave came up with and I’m excited about the project,” Gibson said.
The San Juan mural will be 10 feet by 10 feet. The project has already gone before the San Juan Arts Council and the planning commission, who both signed off on the project.
In Hollister mural projects must go through a mural review if a business is interested in installing one. The Hollister Downtown Association Design Committee regularly discusses the topic of murals at their meeting every month.
Shannon Grissom, a Hollister artist explained that a good mural could do a multitude of things.
“Murals are awesome,” Grissom said. “They can get a historical message across visually in a passing glance, while at the same time they can be intellectual in that they possess a spiritual wow beauty factor.”
Patrick O’Donnell can be reached at
po*******@pi**********.com
