Reed Franke carefully applied the blue paint on the mural at the Art Seen Festival. He was there with his parents and sister, enjoying the day. The family was visiting the concurrent Midland Art Fair for the second time but joined the mural painting for the first time.
“I think it’s pretty fun right now, because of painting and just seeing cool art and cool sculptures,” Reed said.
Reed’s father, Timothy, said the event was a great opportunity to participate in the project and to be a part of the community.
“(Art) is a great way to express yourself, and show other people things that you might not be able to say otherwise,” Timothy said.
Art Seen took place in Downtown Midland at the same time as the Art Fair. Art Seen is a community project of a mural that will be put up in the city. This year, the mural will be installed on the side of Pizza Sam’s at the corner of Ashman and Main.
Michelle Marcotte is one of the artists helping at the festival. Before, she was a vendor at the Art Fair, but joined Arts Seen this year.
She said there are 14 wooden boards that the public can paint, and artists then finish the final details. The boards will then go up on the wall outside the restaurant.
“It’s flowing really well, and people are happy and just really curious about it, and super excited about seeing (the mural) when it’s moved to its final location ... in a couple of weeks, especially the kids,” Marcotte said. “We just have an excellent Art Seen, where we’re trying to make the whole city beautified and united through art.”
Christin Rousseau’s two young daughters were among those who were excited to make art.
“It’s going good; there’s something for kids to do,” Rousseau said. “It’s a nice day. And (my daughter) loves art and liked to look at everyone, too.”
Marcotte said the festival makes her happy because she sees other happy people around. It is also a way to make connections.
“We are really lucky here in Midland to have such a diverse crowd of people coming from all over, and we’re really lucky to have the arts supported,” Marcotte said.
Allise Noble is the local artist who designed the mural. She said Pizza Sam’s was looking for a story about gathering and community, which is exactly what she is showing in the mural.
“This mural says, ‘We need everyone for our community to grow,’” Noble said. “It’s just the idea that we need everyone and all different people involved in our community, and especially for people who feel like me, they don’t have a place for them to know that they are valued and important.”
For Noble, art is a way to be involved in the community, find peace and grow.
“To me, art has been very important in my life,” she said. “It’s definitely something that I use for anxiety relief and that gives me joy. And it’s also something that has allowed me to connect and communicate with others.”
