“HERE IS MAGIC” PUBLIC ART PROJECT
A Nod To Waterfall Arts’ Long History of Community Collaboration
Belfast, ME — June 1, 2023 — Waterfall Arts’ new collaborative public art project “Here is Magic” further solidifies its role as an anchor of the Midcoast art community. This modular 32-panel mural design, using a hive of hexagons, “is a mark of respect for both the individuality of our community members and the power of collaboration in Maine,” as proposed by local mural artist and Waterfall Arts’ Public Art Liaison Peter Walls and Waterfall Arts’ Program Director Amy Tingle.

Over thirty local artists are set to participate by completing individual reflective narratives on the theme of home. When joined together, these panels will form a whole; a creative placemaking that will highlight and celebrate the natural assets of Midcoast Maine. Waterfall Arts is an active home, a nest, an incubator for the fine arts, a hive of energy and inspiration for the entirety of the Midcoast and beyond.

This public mural project is a springboard to create deep and more meaningful collaborations between Midcoast artists, art organizations, and regional entities. By fairly compensating the artists, engaging and educating them about how to be more active community members, as well as teaching them new ways to be self-sustaining in their studio practices, Waterfall Arts cultivates a creative community that can grow and ultimately support itself.

Local artist and project co-coordinator Peter Walls says, “One of the most engaging roles of public art today is to enliven or reinterpret public spaces like Waterfall Arts. Our project ‘Here Is Magic’ was created in order to allow artists a chance to be seen and heard outside of the gallery system, educating them about the creation of Public Art, while also establishing the newly renovated building as a beacon for the Arts and Culture of the region.”

The mural will fill the blank wall on the south side of the Waterfall Arts’ building, organically working its way around the corner to the front, which faces High Street. Although this is the initial installation design for the mural, it may not be the only one, and Waterfall Arts, through their existing partnerships with the local community, is hoping to plan other smaller, temporary installations of the panels throughout Waldo County in order to further facilitate community collaboration, fostering new relationships to grow the hive.