Farmers’ market mural complete

By Mark Boshnack
Staff Writer - The Daily Star

ONEONTA — The last brush strokes were applied Friday to a public work of functional art in Oneonta.

An advertisement for the Oneonta Farmers’ Market decorates the outside of the building owned by Susan and James Kenny on the corner of Main and Fairview streets.

Local artist and interior designer Cynthia Marsh painted the scene from a drawing created by East Meredith graphic designer Cindy Dunne, said Kevin Hodne, director of the Center for Agricultural Development and Entrepreneurship.

Part of the work was paid for with funds from a $7,000 grant awarded to CADE last year, Hodne said.

Money was also provided from a partnership among the Upper Catskill Community Council of the Arts, CADE and the city’s Beautification Committee. Funds from the grant also provided for educational displays and sandwich boards.

With the style of lettering and images of livestock and produce, "Cindy made sure the design had a historical look," he said. "We wanted to make the public aware of our farmers’ market through a well-designed mural."

It is fitting the mural is on the approach to the central city area, he said, because the market helps liven up the area and brings people in to shop and visit coffee shops and restaurants.

"It brings the neighborhood together while contributing to farmers and craft vendors," he said.

The mural enhances one of the gateways to the city, Oneonta Mayor Kim Muller said.

"By making the city look more attractive, it draws people in and (helps) brings them back," she said.

Through the city’s efforts to promote this type of art with UCCCA, Muller said, there are still funds available for additional murals, she said. The city has a tradition of this type of advertising on buildings, she added.

Kenny said her family decided to offer the building wall because of a desire to continue this kind of art.

It was more than a year ago when she was approached by now-UCCCA Executive Director Kathleen Frascatore, who was working for CADE and wrote the grant, Kenny said.

There had been a fading Coca-Cola mural on the building, and when the company didn’t want to pay to have it restored, the couple offered the wall for the farmers’ market advertisement.

"It’s pretty exciting to see something happening," she said. "People who drive into the city will be greeted by it."

Its style makes it almost looks like a page from the Farmers Almanac, she said. "It has a real historical feel."

Marsh, at the site Friday, said, "A lot of people have been driving by this week cheering me on."

She had been working on the painting for three weeks, she said.

"The hardest part had been dealing with the heat," which early on neared 100 degrees, she said.

Because the surface has been prepared, the sign, which was done with exterior masonite paint donated by the local Sherwin Williams store, should last at least 25 years, she said.

Marsh said her murals are in a number of locations around Oneonta, including in area businesses and homes.

"There is something special about public art because the community benefits from it," she said.