Saturday, March 19, 2016

A City Mural

Our new city has plenty of artwork to enjoy. Most prominent is the Essex Street Gateway Mural that encompasses the side of a building. This is not an easy thing to photograph, but you get the idea!


This 4 story landmark contains images of notables from the city of Haverhill, MA. Its theater concept is based on the building itself which was once a theater at the beginning of the 1900s.

The person most people would know in the U.S. is Tom Bergeron, host of Dancing with the Stars and formerly of America's Funniest Home Videos. He is located in the middle image in the window.
The person I could pick out looking at the image was Rob Zombie, also born here. Those of you with a soft spot for heavy metal like me would know who he is. Clearly he is the second person in from the right on the balcony!
For you shoe lovers, that is Stuart Weitzman projected onto the movie screen. I had no idea he was connected to this city!

John Quincy Adams had presented the Haverhill Petition to Congress calling for dissolution of the Union in efforts to completely abolish slavery. He is represented in the top window.
In total there are 52 individuals represented!

Most interesting to me are the objects important to the city such as Ulysses. This ship was built here in Haverhill in the late 1700s first use for merchants, then later an armed vessel that went to France (never made it back though). The chandelier in the artwork represents how the buildings downtown have been been re-purposed from old factories to modern residences and businesses.
The fish pictured near the top right below is the shortnose sturgeon. This fish is meaningful because is is an endangered species  and one of the oldest existing that still comes to spawn each year in the river here.

Another fun fact if you ever read Archie comics growing up....that comic was originally set in this city since its creator Bob Montana lived here! The CW is releasing a new tv show called Riverdale based on the comic and its characters. The Riverdale school in this comic is now Haverhill Town Hall. I have a feeling the show will not be set in this city, but we will have to wait and see where they base it.
Shoes are shown because this city was a hub for shoe making back in the day. The overall architecture in this painting depicts the architectural elements of this city. Credit for this piece goes to MLS Studio of Phildephia, PA as well as the artists who executed the mural.

Thank you for stopping by! Wishing you all a marvelous week ahead! ~Val


19 comments:

  1. thanks for explaining the shoes. i really like the window concept!

    ReplyDelete
  2. How really interesting this is, Val!
    That wall mural is really beautiful, and to think that so many are represented there.
    Than you for sharing this here,
    Have a fantastic weekend!

    ReplyDelete
  3. I just love this type of artwork! This one in particular with the stories it tells. It's a piece of history displayed in the most beautiful way! Love it! I'm glad I stopped by your blog today :)

    Several years ago I worked for a printing shop and one of the buildings had a mural that covered the entire back. I wonder if I ever took a picture? I'll have to look, and if I didn't now I'm going to have to take one next time I'm in that area.

    ReplyDelete
  4. What a marvelous, jam-packed mural! I hope it helps teach city history to the next generation (or even this one, LOL)!

    ReplyDelete
  5. What a great mural! Such a great way to educate people about your city's history.
    PS. Love your new haircut!

    ReplyDelete
  6. Wow, very interesting and such a beautiful artwork!
    Thank you so much for all explanations.
    Have a wonderful Sunday!

    ReplyDelete
  7. so cool! love murals, especially those with so much history - and this one has such a story!

    ReplyDelete
  8. Fabulous murals, my friend :) It's always a delight to visit. Hugs!

    ReplyDelete
  9. What a fantastic mural, so rich with details! Sadly, with the exception of Berlin there's not much street art to be found here.

    ReplyDelete
  10. How interesting! it is really full of details, so much story in it!

    ReplyDelete
  11. if you are looking for cities of mural, try Łódź in Poland. It's post-industrial city full of genius pieces :)
    http://fashavable.blogspot.com/

    ReplyDelete
  12. What am impressive piece of art, thanks for explaining who the people are :D

    ReplyDelete
  13. Wow, what a massive mural. I love how they included so many important people and pieces of history in the painting. Love that Rob Zombie is in it :)
    My favorite part is that it is on ESSEX street! (my hometown!)

    ReplyDelete
  14. Val, this is absolutely amazing! I love murals and the face that this is dimensional & historic is even better. Gorgeous! Thanks for sharing this with us. Loved it.
    http://www.averysweetblog.com/

    ReplyDelete
  15. Wow, this is very cool! And hey, you did what we call the big chop! Now you can grow gray with such ease. Love the cut!

    ReplyDelete
  16. Rob Zombie! There's a similar mural in my city (Naperville) with local "celebrities" and residents who paid to be included. Haha. It's pretty fun to walk along the alley and see who's in there.

    ReplyDelete
  17. That is a cool mural! impressive details and yes I remember Archie comics!

    ReplyDelete
  18. The pictures are awesome,there is so much to see .Great details

    ReplyDelete
  19. WOW!! Brilliant Val! This is amazing! I love how it tells so much history! Happy Easter!

    ReplyDelete

Thank you for stopping by! I love reading visitor comments! ~Val