Tuesday, March 14, 2023

Overview: Hallowell's Wheat Paste Murals, a Public Art Project

In partnership with Hallowell Climate Action, the Hallowell Arts & Cultural Committee invites Maine artists to submit artwork on the theme of “Climate Resilience”. Selected art will be displayed as wheat paste murals in the city of Hallowell in 2023. Our goal is to have art displayed in multiple ocations throughout the city. In addition to the call for art, a group of advanced art students from HDHS will design and install a mural for one of the sites under the guidance of their art instructor Jen Paisley and UMA Professor of Art Peter Precourt. The project sponsored by the City of Hallowell through TIF Funds for the Arts allocated to Hallowell Arts and Cultural Committee.

Wheat pasting is a process of applying paper art to a wall using a temporary “glue” made from flour mixed in water, resulting in a temporary mural.  Murals will be installed in June and removed in October.

Hallowell Wheat Paste Project Committee
Deb Fahy, Hallowell Arts & Culture Committee (chair)
Jen Paisley, Hall-Dale High School art teacher
Malena Gatti, Hallowell Climate Action Group
Janet Paxton, Hallowell Climate Action Group
Judy Skehan, Hallowell Arts & Culture Committee
Chris Vallee, Hallowell Area Board of Trade
Peter Precourt, Professor of Art at the University of Maine at Augusta

For more information contact Deb Fahy, Project Coordinator at hallowellarts@gmail.com


Peter Precourt installing his wheat paste mural of  E.A. Robinson on the back side of Art Dogs in Gardiner in 2016. Kirsten Gilg assisting on the right.


Scott King installing his mural in Gardiner, 2017 Wheat paste art returns to Gardiner - CentralMaine.com


Example: Bangor, 2019 Six Murals Beautify Downtown Bangor [PHOTOS]


Call for Art: Hallowell Wheat Paste Murals "Climate Resilience"

The Hallowell Arts & Cultural Committee and Hallowell Climate Action Committee invite Maine artists to submit work on the theme of “Climate Resilience” to be displayed as wheat paste murals in the city of Hallowell. Wheat pasting is a process of applying paper art to a wall using glue made from flour mixed in water, resulting in a temporary mural. Our committee has selected multiple sites for art to be installed this spring in and around downtown Hallowell. Usually, the work is made at a smaller scale, digitized at high resolution, and sent to a printer to be printed at a scale appropriate for the installation site. The committee will work with selected artists to prepare images and will handle the printing. Artists can create original work to be pasted; if the artist chooses this method, lighter weight paper is encouraged. 

The theme of Climate Resilience challenges artists to create work that inspires reflection, conversation, and both individual and collective action on the myriad of climate challenges facing our communities, while centering the power of climate optimism and the importance of resilience and regeneration.

Selected artists who can come to Hallowell to direct and assist with installation of their work will receive a stipend of $100 to cover travel and other expenses. The installation date is Saturday, June 3rd, 2023, with a back up date of Sunday June 4th. The Hallowell Arts and Cultural Committee will cover the costs of printing artwork and make arrangements for the installation and deinstallation of the murals.

The deadline to submit work is April 24, 2023. Submissions may be single works of art, or they may consist of multiple related artworks. Submissions will be reviewed by the project steering committee and artists will be notified of our decision May 9th.

Please submit your work via email as jpg, pdf or png file attachments (not pasted into the body of the email please), or include a link to a Dropbox or Google Drive folder in your email. If selected, you will need to submit a high quality, larger scale PDF image of your work, to be printed at full scale for installation. Committee members can help with this if needed.

Please copy and paste and provide the following information in the body of your email and send your submission to: hallowellarts@gmail.com:

Artist's Name:
Phone:
Town of residence in Maine:
Title(s) of submission(s) with the dimensions that you would like the work printed:
Any information you’d like the committee to know about your submitted art or concept or any thoughts on its installation:
If selected, would you be able to come to Hallowell for the installation of your mural?:
*Will you need help making a large format PDF of your work?:

*Your answer here will not impact the selection; however, it will facilitate the planning process.

Questions? Contact Deb Fahy, Project Coordinator at hallowellarts@gmail.com












Picture your art here!

"Your Feet Are Killing Me" by Sabrina El Costell

  Your Feet Are Killing Me by Sabrina El Costell of West Gardiner, Maine