The McLean County Arts Center has received a grant from the State of Illinois, Illinois Arts Council, to lead twenty public workshops for a public mural to be applied to the exterior of our facilities.  This effort will create an extensive edition of painted grey-scale self-portraits by a broad spectrum of community members led by a professional artist. The outcome of these workshops would be several hundred self-portraits. These paintings, made on primed-on poly tab vinyl mural material, would be permanently affixed to our facility's exterior public space. Each portrait would be roughly 8” x10”. 

Created both in onsite workshops and at offsite locations under the leadership of paid artists, the finished works would then be collaged onto the prepared exterior retaining walls at street level.The walls are on the facility's south side. This area will soon become the organization’s public face due to an extensive renovation on this side of the facility of the adjoining park and public parking lot. 

The poly tab is a standard parachute cloth material for professional exterior murals. Like the Irving school project, these paintings would be made with a monochromatic color range using mural-quality paints designed to withstand sunlight damage. The finished paintings could be cut out to include just the heads or left in the rectangle. They are to be permanently affixed to the lower portion of the building’s exterior retaining walls using adhesive and then top-coated with a protective UV varnish, following the standards of the Philadelphia Mural Project to ensure longevity and professional appearance. About 2,000 square feet of exterior building wall will adorned with these paintings. 

Geographic Area Served: The McLean County Arts Center serves that county, which has a population of 174,000 residents. The organization seeks to expand our designated services to include Livingston County and Logan County on the north and south along the Interstate 55 line. 

Intended Outcomes: Several outcomes are foreseen. First, the somewhat formal and imposing facade of the historic 1908 building would be softened without violating the integrity of the building’s design. Second, artists would be employed to teach a professional technique that will inspire other artists to embrace more formal standards for producing exterior mural projects. Lastly, a robust spectrum of regional citizens will have made concrete their role not just as artists but also as the ‘face’ of the institution. 

Artist’s Pay: Professional artists would be trained to follow the model of the Philadelphia Mural project standards and would be paid for their time in both the training, leading participants in the projects, and the installation of the finished works. 

The McLean County Arts Center has a new mission and would love for anyone and everyone to join. No matter your occupation or artistic abilities, you can be an artist. The center’s plan is to facilitate twenty public workshops for a public mural which will be applied to the exterior of the center’s facilities. These paintings, primed on poly-tab vinyl material, will be your canvas. The poly-tab vinyl is given to you through the center.

The MCAC staff and volunteers cut each piece down to preferred size after priming. Priming consists of a gesso and matte medium mixture. The purpose of the primer is to allow paint to fully adhere to the material, cover imperfections, and act as surface protection. Once priming is finished, staff will hang the poly-tab vinyl. Finally, when dry, you're free to create.

After finishing your pieces, MCAC staff and volunteers will work on placing your works on the exteriors of the center’s facilities. By spreading glue on the back of your works as well as the exterior wall of the buildings, staff then place your portraits on the wall. The next step is to squeegee your portraits smoothly onto the wall before it dries completely. Squeegeeing removes any air-bubbles found underneath your works as they were placed on the wall. Staff then double checks their work before allowing it to cure. From there on, finishing touches are made. Through this effort, we will create an extensive edition of painted grey-scale self-portraits by a broad spectrum of community members led by a professional artist.

The outcome of these workshops would be several hundred self-portraits. The subject matter for each painting you decide to make is required to be a self-portrait, how you choose to represent yourself is completely up to you. The color scheme has to be monochromatic–values of blacks, white and greys. Each portrait, three per person, is roughly 18” x15”. 

Simplified instructions

Introduction: The McLean County Arts Center has a new mission and would love for anyone and everyone to join. No matter your occupation or artistic abilities, you can be an artist. The center is hosting twenty public workshops to create a mural located throughout the center’s exterior facilities owned by MCAC. You will be creating a self-portrait on poly-tab vinyl material. Through this effort, we will create an extensive edition of painted grey-scale self-portraits by a broad spectrum of community members led by a professional artist. The outcome of these workshops would be several hundred self-portraits.

Instructions:

● Each portrait should be 8”x10”.

● Use a monochromatic color scheme (black and grey).

● You can choose any style (realism, abstract, silhouette, etc.).

● You can create up to three portraits. Materials:

● The poly-tab vinyl is provided by the center.

● The vinyl is pre-primed with a mix of gesso and matte medium to help paint, stick, and protect the surface material.

Displaying the Portraits:

● Once finished, MCAC staff and volunteers will attach your portraits to the building’s walls.

● They will use glue and a squeegee to press your portraits smoothly onto the wall.

Final Steps:

● The portraits will be thoroughly checked, and adjusted to line up nicely prior to curing. Once everything is finished, the mural will be complete!