The public art in the alleyway beside Red House Sweets that depicts two thrushes. The City of St. Albans commissioned the piece this past June.
ST. ALBANS CITY — More public art could be coming to downtown St. Albans this summer. But first, organizers have to figure out what it’s going to be.
The St. Albans downtown board will be considering options this April as its members plan to install a new piece of public art on the side of the Planet Fitness, to be seen by pedestrians and drivers traveling along Main Street.
Julia Morrison, who came up with the idea, is scheduled to submit the design proposals.
“We have a total of three artists submitting proposals for that April board meeting,” Morrison said. “The hope is to have something fun and welcoming to brighten up that wall by Planet Fitness.”
Some new color
City officials and civic-minded residents have been throwing around the idea of adding more public art to downtown St. Albans for the last few years, and a couple projects have popped up.
Back in 2022, local artist Ron Snapp submitted a piece that stayed in Taylor Park for a few months that highlighted the fighting in Ukraine. City officials gave the go-ahead, although most of the work and cost was carried by Snapp in order to erect his statement piece. The sculpture itself featured a chain link fence covered in toys that looked like the Ukrainian flag.
In the years since, the city has been more involved in tailoring the downtown to help St. Albans stand out, leading the administration to fund two separate projects. The first — the idea of public works director Marty Manahan — transformed an old tree in Taylor Park into a patriotic symbol, and the second came to the city by way of artist Dee Christie, who envisioned a mural in the alleyway by Red House Sweets.
City Council agreed to fund the alleyway project this past June, using roughly $11,000 in city redevelopment funds to cover the cost. The end-result is wall-art of two thrushes — Vermont’s state bird — dressed up as hipsters as they perch on a croissant and a coffee mug.
“Public art is an investment in place-making,” City Manager Dominic Cloud said about the project. “Placemaking is pretty broad. It can be a lot of things, but it helps distinguish the community and makes people feel they are somewhere unique and different from what’s down the highway. Art is a big piece of that.”
Morrison would likely agree. As someone who has traveled extensively throughout the state — by her count, she’s been to roughly 150 of Vermont’s 251 towns — she said public art helps make a place stand out.
“The towns that have public art, they make you feel something,” she said. “They make you want to stay. They make you want to come back.”
Morrison works as an art teacher at Shelburne Community School. After moving to St. Albans, she said she wanted to bring more art to St. Albans to help improve its vibrancy in line with other placemaking towns throughout the state. Instead of commuting away to find art, she said she could bring it here.
“I needed to make a change if I wanted to see a difference in the community,” she said.
Options on the table
To find designs for the Planet Fitness wall, Morrison reached out to two artists, Vermont-based muralist Kathryn Wiegers and Abby Manock, a Brooklyn-based artist.
Those familiar with the children’s floor of University of Vermont Medical Center, downtown Rutland or Burlington City Arts may have seen Wiegers’ work. Her style often uses bold lines and high contrast to show hyper-real subjects at large scales, and she had a featured show at BCA in 2021.
In comparison, Manock’s murals lean more heavily on bold patterns and bright colors. Back in 2012, she even did work for Cabot by replicating Vermont’s red-and-black flannel look to make it into a wall-sized mural.
Additionally, St. Albans artist Jon Young will also get a chance to present his vision for the wall. His work — known for its vibrant depictions of real-life scenes — can be seen throughout St. Albans, although he’s most likely known as the artist behind the city’s big Adirondack chair, deployed every year in Taylor during Vermont’s warmer months.
As for the designs themselves, Morrison asked the artists to create a mural that’s welcoming, playful and just a little whimsical to hit the right balance for St. Albans.
The St. Albans City downtown board will then choose the design after considering each artist’s sketches and budget breakdown. The goal, downtown manager Arleigh Young said, is to have the piece completed by June, hopefully in time for the Vermont’ Art Council’s Creative Sector Convening event, scheduled for June 5.
“(Public art) is about putting the effort into making it into a bright welcoming place,” Morrison said. “It makes you feel like you want to come back and take a selfie in front of the mural. It makes you want to linger and go into stores.”
As for the city’s involvement, Cloud encouraged people to think of more ideas for public art, as there are avenues to potentially cover some of the costs. The Vermont Arts Council’s Animating Infrastructure grant, for example, is already being considered by Morrison as a way to make more improvements to St. Albans, with an eye toward Taylor Park.
“We’re open to proposals,” Cloud said. “We’re open to inspiration.”
The St. Albans downtown board meets on the fourth Tuesday of every month in the St. Albans City Council chambers. Its next meeting is scheduled for 6 p.m. April 30.
