Cabot’s new murals on The Art Walk are an invitation to the region and the state to visit and explore Cabot.
Our family focused community is getting some color! The “Paint This Wall” project CFAC announced in late November has finally (after MANY weekends of rain and cold) seen some sunshine and the artists have been out in droves. This past Saturday when I stopped by it was joyous to see paint brushes being wielded by kids and grown ups alike. And seeing the rainbow of colors down the wall on several spaces made me smile.
Other communities have seen the change murals have on a community. Gabe Holmstrom, Executive Director of the Downtown Little Rock Partnership told us, “Public art in general and murals in particular, have a way of immediately changing the feel of an area when they are completed. Changing a blank wall into one full of color has been proven to put smiles on faces, generate conversations and create the desire for more art.”
Mat Faulkner, Director of Think ART Project in Searcy agreed, “It is astounding the impact that public art and murals have had on our community. Immediately following the installation of our large-scale murals, we saw an increase in tourism, interactivity among locals, foot traffic increased downtown, we began hearing positive comments on social media about how our community was feeling more progressive, selfies started popping up everywhere, and we even began seeing more businesses relocate downtown. The artwork was designed and installed by locals, generating a sense of pride and personal investment into making our community better.”
We’ve already seen the Cabot Art Walk murals start to gather citizens and create community – the artists are posting on social media when they’re painting and interested citizens are stopping by to watch them work. One artist even invited young children to help her paint in her work. (Little ones with a paint brush are just adorable).
Art breaks down barriers and creates conversation and dialogue between dissimilar groups in a community. Everyone can admire an art piece – maybe it speaks to you, maybe it doesn’t. Maybe it says something different to you than the person standing beside you. Maybe the piece will make you ponder and think about what the artist intended. No matter what an art piece makes you feel, it will affect you. Whether in a big way or a small way, a work of art is like a teacher – you’ll take it with you for the rest of your life.
The Cabot Art Walk is an introduction to murals in Cabot – CFAC has recently been granted funding from the A&P commission for large scale, commissioned murals. AND, because we like to always stay community and citizen focused, we’re holding a Mural Visioning Session at Brew YaYa on March 11 @ 6:30pm. We’ll talk about the future of murals in Cabot – please make plans to join us!
P.S. Go take a look at the Art Walk and let us know which mural speaks the loudest to you!