Runnels County Register
Jean Hensley, of the MWTAG said the group plans to unveil the two murals to the public during a special event on Friday, Oct. 13 at the Do-Art Studio.
“We wanted to have the event on Homecoming weekend,” Hensley said. “We will have some prints of the mural available for visitors to purchase.”
The event is still in the planning stages, so more details will be released as the event gets closer, Hensley said.
Members of MWTAG have been busily working on the project since February and are excited for the unveiling of the painting which features landmarks from all over Runnels County.
The two large murals will soon adorn the windows of the vacant building at 108 9th Street.
The project is completely financed by First National Bank of Ballinger and the murals will fill the windows of the vacant buildings owned by the bank.
In the last several weeks, artists like Jean Hensley, Tom Orsak, Lue Kraatz and Shirley Minzenmayer and others have been busy putting the finishing touches on the two panels.
The Heritage panel includes the Cross and church steeples, agriculture, cotton, wheat and oil while the History and Hospitality panel will include images of the courthouse, the Carnegie Library, the Texas Theatre and the Texas Grill.
The murals, which are 6 feet by 8 feet in size, are painted on sign board with acrylic paint. The murals will be exposed to the elements so a special sealant will be applied to them as well.
Orsak is exceptionally proud of the murals he is helping paint at the studio.
“I’m very excited about it,” Orsak said recently.
Once these two panels are complete, in a month or so, he and other Guild members will get to work on designing additional panels.
All of the Guild members have had input in what will be featured on the mural panels. They even got the students in Art Camp in June to contribute, by putting bearcat claw prints on the murals.
“It is going to be busy but we wanted to make it as much of a representation of Runnels County as we can,” Orsak said.
Visitors who would like to get a sneak peek at the mural can stop by the Do-Art Studio and will likely see artists working on the finishing touches during the day in coming weeks leading up to Oct. 13.
“There is usually someone there in the day time,” Hensley said. The Do-Art Studio is home to artwork from many local artists and can be viewed at the studio. The Guild members meet the first Tuesday of each month at 4:30 p.m. at the studio.