BCAC Community ImprovementProjects

Artisan’s Alley

ABOUT THE ARTISAN’S ALLEY PROJECT:

Artisan’s Alley presented by the Bertie County Arts Council is an outdoor art space designed to explore the love of art outside of the gallery walls. We hope to host convenings which will embrace many genres of art. Our board is thrilled to work as a team and realize this vision with the leadership of community trailblazer (and fellow BCAC director) Ms. Nicole Outlaw.

From performing arts to culinary micro-excursions, our desire is to become a tourist attraction for regional visitors and a second home for the locals. This creative placemaking project will be a value-added experience contributing to the increasing vibrancy of downtown Windsor. Artisan’s Alley on King Street will serve alongside the Granville Street mural area as a second central location for exciting future downtown events such as First Fridays. First Fridays will be an interactive art appreciation event which will occur on the first Friday of every month.

Overall, our mission is to ignite the spark for social change through art and to improve the physical environment of the designated space.

Artisan’s Alley will be adjacent to 122 S King Street, in Windsor. If you would like to contribute to this placemaking project, send your donations to BCAC by clicking here, calling 252-794-9402, emailing bertiearts@gmail.com, or visiting our gallery. There will also be a raffle at our annual membership dinner on June 15th with 100% of the proceeds going to kick start funding for the project.

Roanoke Cashie River Center Mural

ABOUT THE ROANOKE CASHIE RIVER CENTER MURAL PROJECT

In 2023, Bertie County Arts Council contributed over $2500 to help fund a mural project at the Roanoke Cashie River Center at 112 Water Street in Windsor. The steering committee selected renowned local artist Mike Bennett to paint this mural, which is still in progress. If you’d like to see more of Mike’s body of work please click here to visit his website.

2022 Windsor Mural Project

Photo credit: Carolyn Marie Howerton

about the windsor mural project:

In 2022 the North Carolina Department of Natural and Cultural Resources, in partnership with the N.C. Arts Council, Hello NC, Hometown Strong and the North Carolina Museum of Art invested in significant, community-based public art projects which contributed to the vibrancy and spirit of rural communities across the state.  We were thrilled to find out Bertie County was selected as a beneficiary of this program. A steering committee of Bertie community leaders and NC Arts representatives was formed in early 2022 to determine what community-involved artistic capital improvement project might best benefit Bertie County. Together they chose to spend the funds to hire professional muralists to complete a large format outdoor artwork in our county seat to freshen the aesthetic of the town, provide hands-on arts opportunities to the community, and encourage tourism. The mural job opportunity was announced in April, and in June the contract was awarded to Andrew & Sarah McWilson of Hand in Hand Creative.

Phase I of the project centered around installation of the selected mural in an underutilized area of downtown Windsor on East Granville Street which consisted of a parking area and vacant lot with an adjacent huge blank wall. The ultimate goal is to continue improving this space for the entire community to enjoy as an outdoor venue for pop up events and gatherings of all kinds.

Our Windsor Mural Project kickoff event was held October 8th. Attendees enjoyed refreshments with their neighbors while getting better acquainted with the McWilsons and playing parachute games together. The photos taken during the community parachute games served as a basis for Andrew & Sarah’s design. This event really set a positive tone for the project and offered the perfect glimpse into what a tremendous asset this outdoor gathering space will eventually become for Bertie County.

Hand in Hand Creative soon after officially broke ground on the mural and held a series of community doodle and painting days, one of which coincided with Bertie County tricentennial celebration events being held in Windsor on November 5th. These community paint days provided collaborative hands-on art creating opportunities to anyone who wished to participate and felt much like free art classes. 

Andrew and Sarah were diligent in their delivery of the mural throughout the entire process. Their professional attention to detail and sensitivity to the feelings of our community were commendable. For example, their design includes imagery from the mural that was originally there an homage to the Bertie County High School class of 1993. There is a cream-colored border which beautifully defines the image and makes it really pop. Several attendees of our October kickoff party were thrilled to see their own likeness represented in the mural as the image developed.

The completed mural design feels simultaneously energetic yet cozy - a good representation of the McWilson’s dyadic partnership and lifestyle. Their fearlessness with color directly stimulates the senses the moment one first sees the wall, followed by a warming of the heart as the viewer receives the wholesome imagery. The third layer of impression comes as the viewer looks more deeply into the mural and appreciates that subtle understated effect which accompanies Hand in Hand Creative’s expert application of shading and detail. The final layer of impact comes from one of Andrew & Sarah’s other finishing touches, the addition of verbiage which distills the theme and energy of the entire piece into these eleven words: “more hands than my own to lift a story of home.”

Phase I concluded right on schedule before the December 3rd Windsor Christmas Parade. Our final event to celebrate its conclusion was held at the mural site on December 17th, 2022. We gathered together once again to play parachute games, enjoy refreshments (which included boiled peanuts provided by Bertie County Peanuts), to participate in a community question & answer session with Andrew and Sarah, and to generally bask in the surge of hometown pride.

The goal of Phase II of the Windsor Mural Project is to install a series of nearby smaller-scale painted “vignettes,” which were not included with the original contract but would be a generous gift in kind which Hand in Hand offered to us during fall 2022. These vignettes will feature specific local subject matter (once again determined by the steering committee, Hand in Hand Creative, and our contact at NC Arts) and will be staggered around downtown, perfect for a walking tour. Hand in Hand would furthermore like to include students in the installation process and has already connected with Bertie County Schools to arrange for this when the time is right. Phase II is currently on hold while the Town of Windsor and the steering committee members seek approval for vignette installation from downtown property owners with available blank walls. All involved parties made official plans to circle back to Phase II after a bit of much needed winter downtime and will reconvene in spring of 2023.

Check out the photos immediately below this text to see photo documentation of the ongoing process. If you’re interested in seeing more content, please keep scrolling downward to see our mural “blog” and stay current on all the latest news and activities associated with this exciting community arts project!

Dear Members and Friends,

We are pleased to announce that phase one of the Windsor Mural Project has concluded right on schedule, with the Hand in Hand Creative team having completed their largest installation at 122 E. Granville Street. The new mural has already served to enhance our charming downtown area with renewed vibrancy, color, and collective excitement throughout its entire delivery.
You are cordially invited to gather together with us for a finale party at the mural starting at 1pm on Saturday, December 17th, 2022 to celebrate the completion of this great work and its positive impact on our community. Hot cocoa, cookies, and boiled peanuts will be served.

We hope to see you Saturday 12/17/22, but if you can’t make it to the finale event, don’t worry. Documentation of the entire process from start to finish will be available on our website at www.bertiearts.com/mural-project.
Big thanks to Andrew & Sarah McWilson of Hand in Hand Creative, to our steering committee members, and of course to our generous sponsors who collectively all made this fabulous mural possible.

Best Wishes,
Bertie County Arts Council

QUICK LINKS TO OUR WINDSOR MURAL PROJECT SPONSORS & PARTNERS:
www.bertiearts.com
www.handinhandcreative.org
www.ncarts.com
https://ncartmuseum.org/
http://www.co.bertie.nc.us/
https://windsornc.com/

THE MURAL IS COMPLETE!!

a message from andrew & sarah mcwilson

LIFT

Windsor, NC

[Bertie County]

“More hands than my own to lift a story of home.”

It’s important to us to tell the human story in our work. Though our own existence may be singular, it’s shaped by our shared humanity. We find that most when we come together, when we circle up and really see each other. We see this as how any change happens, how good is grown. It’s the meaning of all of this and yet it can be missing too often by default.

It started with a parachute — a kinetic, vibrant symbol of support andunity. A metaphor for sure, because the parachute only lifts off the ground with others in the circle. Still, it was never about the

parachute, but rather, the intentional act of coming together. It’s a collective story of home, of community, of connection. People walk up to us frequently, point and say, “hey, that looks like me!” To us, that’s the very hope of everything we’re after with our work. That anyone can find themselves in the story — in the visual, in the words, and through the marriage of the two.

Every single conversation we had with individuals along the way helped shape the meaning and the message of this work. Again and again we come home to the truth that it’s the people who make the place what it is. And this place is no exception. Thank you for letting us call Windsor home for the last two and a half months. You welcomed us warmly, and you continue to share your love each and every day.

-s & a

QUICK LINKS TO OUR WINDSOR MURAL PROJECT SPONSORS & PARTNERS:

@handinhandcreative

@ncartscouncil

@ncartmuseum

www.co.bertie.nc.us

www.windsornc.com

NEXT COMMUNITY PAINTING DAY 11/05/22

A MESSAGE FROM ANDREW & SARAH MCWILSON

It is our belief that it’s the people who make a place special. And after our first visit to Windsor this summer, we knew we wanted to find a way to use this mural to bring people together. That would become our goal of this project, both with the process and the design. To us, there’s no greater version of people coming together, than forming a circle. Our circle centers around a parachute — a piece of fabric stretched and held tightly by humans around its edges. Connected and supported, working together for a common goal and having fun in the process. We brought this vision to life for the first time here in Windsor at our kick-off event October 8th. Photos taken that night were used to arrive at our final concept that would become our official guide for this larger-than-life mural. Thank you to all who came out to this kick-off event, and who have welcomed us warmly since.

The wall is now primed and doodled — thanks to help from the community. We had no idea doodling would receive such a response, and we have welcomed sharing the experience with each one of you who has come by to make your mark on the wall. These doodles are an important part of our process as they have become our grid to help us scale our design big!

On Saturday, November 5th, 12-3 p.m. we are hosting a community public painting day which will run concurrently with the Bertie County Tricentennial celebration. All are invited to help us bring the bottom portion of the mural to life as we begin blocking in the vibrant colors of our design. We will supply everything you need and no painting experience is required. All ages are welcome! Wear paint-friendly clothes.

DOODLE DAY - A PUBLIC PAINTING EVENT

The time has come for our first Doodle Day! You are cordially invited to come by the job site and have a hand in the mural. This first step is all about the process! These doodles are the first layer of painting and will set the stage for the mural to take shape. Your doodles will be a guide to help Andrew & Sarah bring their larger-than-life image up on the wall. Bring yourself and wear paint-friendly clothes just in case. All ages welcome. No painting experience required!

—————

QUICK LINKS TO OUR WINDSOR MURAL PROJECT SPONSORS & PARTNERS:

www.handinhandcreative.org

www.ncarts.org

www ncartmuseum.org

www.co.bertie.nc.us

www.windsornc.com

PHOTOS FROM OUR FIRST COMMUNITY PAINTING “DOODLE” DAY:

SUCCESSFUL KICKOFF EVENT SETS A POSITIVE TONE FOR THE WINDSOR MURAL PROJECT!

Last Saturday’s Windsor Mural Project kickoff event was a blast! There was a nice turnout and the weather couldn’t have been more perfect. Everyone enjoyed refreshments with neighbors while we got better acquainted with our Hand in Hand Creative mural artists (Andrew & Sarah McWilson) and played parachute games together. This event really set a positive tone for the entire project. It was so nice to gather at the mural site and get a glimpse of what a tremendous asset this outdoor gathering space will eventually become for Bertie County. Big thank you to everyone who came out on October 8th from Bertie County Arts Council as well as our partners and sponsors (links below). We all really appreciate your support and shared enthusiasm! We are planning several more Windsor Mural Project community events, so please stay tuned to our newsletter, website, and social media feeds for the latest info. See you all again soon!

QUICK LINKS TO OUR WINDSOR MURAL PROJECT SPONSORS & PARTNERS: Hand in Hand Creative, NC Arts Council, NC Museum of Art, Bertie County NC, Town of Windsor NC

WINDSOR MURAL PROJECT KICKOFF EVENT PLANNED FOR SATURDAY OCTOBER 8TH

WINDSOR MURAL ARTISTS SELECTED!

HUGE PAID MURAL PAINTING OPPORTUNITY IN WINDSOR NC!