Other Public Art in Cuba, MO
Art attacks community! It’s contagious!
By now everyone knows that Cuba is “Rt. 66 Mural City.” Viva Cuba’s outdoor mural project has been ballyhooed on TV and in magazines. But while the mural project was underway, the display of public art outside the project spread throughout the community. Art is everywhere. What started as a project by one organization is now a grassroots movement that seems contagious. Perhaps we take Cuba’s art for granted, but for others who visit our town, it is an attraction.
My Place Tires rolls out new mural in Cuba
My Place Tires, on old Rt. 66 at 1203 W. Washington, owned by Craig Stovall, is the latest business to place a mural on the facade of its building. Stovall hired Missouri artist Ray Harvey to paint the vintage road scene on the building with a business sign below. Stovall placed a mural on his building so that the business would fit well with the other murals and public art in Cuba. The mural depicts a bright, red ‘62 Corvette. Harvey said, “The painting is designed to look like a mid-century tire ad….”
Harvey also painted the Bette Davis Mural on the Cuba Free Press building and the History at the 4-Way (Phillips 66/Wallis) murals along the Rt. 66 corridor. In addition, he painted the murals inside the Victorian Manor assisted living facilities and inside Holy Cross Church (see below).
Victorian Manor decks the halls
Three more Ray Harvey murals are found in the Victorian Manor Assisted Living facility, which John and Nancy Quick opened on Hwy DD. Three nostalgic multi-dimensional interior murals add warmth and interest to the Victorian Manor.
Missouri artist, Ray Harvey painted all three murals. When Harvey was on ladder painting Viva Cuba’s History at the 4-way outdoor mural, John Quick came by and said he was interested in having murals painted at Victorian Manor. Later in the day when rain stopped Harvey’s painting, he went to Victorian Manor to discuss the murals that the Quicks wanted. The captivating result combines real objects and painted scenes. The technique, called trompe l’ oeil, means “fool the eye.”
In the entry, a river scene, complete with a real canoe and a stuffed fish twisting in the throws of being caught, greets visitors and residents. The dining room wall supports half of a red Corvette mounted on the wall. Harvey then painted a Rt. 66 Drive-in scene and other vintage cars around the Corvette. An opposite wall features a mounted 52 Chevy truck grill. The rest of the front end, along with a kissing couple in the front seat, is painted around the grill. A painted drive-in tray with fries and a coke adds realistic detail. A motion detector turns on the vehicle lights and the Rt. 66 sign when someone passes by. Harvey and Quick began the mural project by installing the real objects on the wall. Then Harvey says, “Away I went,” and he designed the colorful scenes that were eventually painted.
Art at Victorian Manor also continues outside the building. A landscaped lake with a fountain, sculptured eagle, and other animals standing guard provides a tranquil bit of nature. A walking path with benches surrounds the lake and offers residents an outdoor area.
Catholic Church and a show of faith
Showing his artistic talents in another direction, Harvey also painted the murals that adorn the altar area of the Holy Cross Church. Before painting religious paintings, Harvey studied the work and sketches of Michelangelo. Using the same trompe l’ oeil method, Harvey painted what looked like columns and molding surrounding religious figures. These paintings now enrich the worship of Catholic churchgoers. Exterior art enhances the exterior of the school campus. On a recent, hot July day, standing atop a scaffold, Harvey painted a figure of Jesus on the exterior of Holy Cross School.
Bakery scene rises to the occasion
The uptown business district has also embraced art. An old time bakery scene stretches the length of an interior wall at the Main Street Bakery on NW Main. South St. Louis artist Julie Nixon Krovicka, who graduated from Cuba High School, added this embellishment to the century old building during its renovation. Before the painting, she and building owner Andy Sanazaro collaborated on the design, which underwent many changes. According to Krovicka, “”The original idea was to paint a facsimile of a late 1800s advertisement for a bakery product featuring a woman and to make it look aged.” During painting, the size of the painting area was changed several times, so the original sketch evolved into the longer, larger mural as it exists today. The original sketch only featured the woman kneading dough, the fireplace, and the main room. The rest of the design was done as the area for the mural was extended.
Elaborating on the design, Krovicka stated,“the painted sign over the shelves in the mural advertising ‘Amy’s Cakes’ is obviously customized for Amy Sanazaro. I talked with them about things they liked that they had seen elsewhere, and then looked at the style of dress, furniture in old cookbooks and posters and put together a scene. I also tried to incorporate colors from the rest of the bakery in the murals.” The result is a large, striking mural in keeping with the historical era of the building that often provokes appreciative comments from the bakery’s customers.
Krovicka also painted an agricultural scene in the café portion of the building that features a farmhouse, field, and a farm family harvesting crops.
On the outside of the café building Krovicka added a scene with children playing as well as signs and other memorabilia of nearby Rt. 66.
Just around the corner, on the side of Frisco’s Pub is a couple of more of Krovicka’s smaller works. In recessed panels of the building, Krovicka painted two exterior murals for Frisco’s owner Virginia Watson. The small murals commemorate the purchase of young Rachel Abolt’s 4-H goat by John and Virginia Watson during the 2006 County Fair. The goat, which had been named Frisco after the restaurant, now maintains pet status and is immortalized on the side of the building. Along side Rachel’s painting is a painting of Rachel’s brother David with Frisco. A scene with brother David playing golf was later added to the side of the building.
Also on that side of Frisco’s building and on another much larger mural on the other side of the building is a Frisco train with a green background and the word Frisco’s. Instead of just a regular sign, owner Virginia Watson kept her sign in keeping with Cuba’s mural theme. Shelly Smith Steiger, one of Viva Cuba’s premier artists, painted these colorful additions to the building, which add to the train-themed restaurant.
Elk Sculpture rears its head
The Tutterrow taxidermy business Wildlife Unlimited boasts an elk sculpture that was crafted by Glen Tutterrow when he wanted to embellish his Hwy. 19 sign. When talks with a designer fell through, Tutterrow decided on a do-it-yourself project. Over a couple of months, he designed and created the sculpture. The result is a work that could cost thousands if Tutterow had paid an artist instead of doing the work himself.
Mace’s keeps it in the family
Even a mundane task such as shopping for groceries at Mace’s provides an opportunity for an artistic experience. When the new store was built in 2006, a mural was on the “must have” agenda. According to Lynn Mace, “We are very proud to live in Cuba and especially proud of the city’s murals. Since Cuba is now known as “Mural City,” we wanted to follow that theme in the store. Lynn points out that her husband Randy Mace is the 5th generation grocery store owner in his family, so they wanted the subject of their two store murals to be “family.” Therefore, they placed Mace family members in the murals.
The mural over the produce section that reflects the harvest below, pictures Randy’s mom and dad Carroll and Norma from a photo taken at Meramec Springs in 1953. Also pictured are the first three trucks that their son Austin owned. The two boys in front of the red truck are sons Austin and Aaron Mace at ages 16 and 11. This is from a 2001 photo.
The second mural over the meat section shows farm life and good wholesome food. The fields and fencing are from the Mace’s land, and the cows are ones that the Maces owned at the time. The children sitting on the gate are Logan, Hannah, and Aaron Mace from a photo taken in 2004. Logan and Hannah belong to Jimmy and Jackie Mace. Austin Mace is on one of their tractors. On a recent visit to the store, Austin, a 6th generation family grocer, could be seen through the meat room window, just below his mural picture.
Lynn worked with the design company of their grocery supplier and an their artist Buck to complete the mural plan. Lynn and Buck sent many e-mails and snippets of mural back and forth while they worked out the design. The local wall painting by Don Rogers had to be very precise so that the murals were would fit in their designated space when they were mounted. Later Buck came to Cuba to paint a few changes into the murals. The unique aspect of these “family” murals is that they were kept a secret from family members until they were mounted on the walls. Lynn Mace says, “That was a fun day, watching the surprise of even our own family members.”
Patriotism post 9/11
Another mural is the patriotic panel on the East Office that appeared after 9/11. At the time, its artist wanted to remain anonymous, and East Office owner Mark Harris kept the secret. But recently, after Harris got permission from the artist, he said that Johnny Bland of Cuba was the painter. At the time, Bland didn’t want the attention of having his name publicized and says, “I didn’t do it for the attention, I just did it.” Bland, who had done other artwork for Harris, suggested the patriotic themed artwork for East Office. Bland has done other paintings for restaurants and lounges around town and enjoys doing oil painting and woodcarving at his home.
Rockin’ Out on Route 66
In addition to the Guinness Record holder “World’s Largest Rocker” that was erected next to the Outpost General Store on April 1, 2008, the Outpost has added a mural to the building. John Bland, who designed the rocker, used his creative energies to add a whimsical Route 66 scene to the side of the Outpost building.
The Outpost added a whimsical Route 66 mural to the side of the building in 2008 that features vintage cars and motorcycles traveling Route 66.
Veterans' Memorial
In 2007, two brothers Phil and W.D. Mullen decided to honor the memory of their brother Ciff Mullen, who died in 1969 from injuries suffered in Vietnam. They began a two-year journey to raise over $100,000 dollars to build a veterans memorial that has not only the name of their brother but 923 other names as well.
The memorial sits in the Recklein Commons Area on Smith Street. The Missouri red granite was shipped to Keystone Memorial in Georgia where the names were sandblasted onto the surface. In October of 2008, the granite memorial was trucked to Cuba for the installation in time for a Veterans’ Day dedication.
Crawford County History Museum adds murals
The Smith Street Museum in the Recklein Commons area added some "school themed” murals to their second story staircase. They chose students for the focus of the murals because the building was originally used as a school.
Cuba High School graduate Julie Nixon Krovicka painted the murals. Krovicka previously painted the the murals and signage at the Main Street Bakery and Café and mini-murals at Frisco’s Pub & Grill. She painted the image of her father on Viva Cuba’s Millworks mural.
For more information, see the Cuba Free Press article “Museum gets a new paint job"
After the Murals
Viva Cuba extended their public art program when they redesigned the Viva Cuba Garden at the junction of Route 66 and Hwy. 19 in 2008. Father and son team Curtis and Glen Tutterrow built the 1873 train replica that was placed on the brick wall. Missouri artist Julie Wiegand painted the traffic control boxes adjacent to the garden with a turn-of-the-century scene of a mother and child walking to the train.
What next?
Ten years ago people would have laughed at the idea that Cuba would become known for its art, murals, and sculpture. But today, like many ideas, once they gain momentum, anything can happen. A single mural in 2001 started a movement that seems to be contagious in nature.