CLAY CITY, Ind. (WTWO/WAWV)— A mural in Clay City is nearing completion and it’s being painted by someone who knows the Wabash Valley very well in Becky Hochhalter, who is adding vibrant colors and city pride to Clay City one paint stroke at a time.
The Clay City USA Foundation has been working with Hochhalter to decide on what all should go into the mural and the President of the Clay City USA Foundation, David Schuck, knew that Hochhalter was an easy choice when it came to who should paint the mural.
“We’ve seen the different work that Becky has done throughout our local communities and we’re really impressed,” Schuck said. “We felt she would be the best person to take our ideas and put them, paint them in the mural and put them on the walls.”
Hochhalter mentioned that a project of this size can take three to four weeks and it all starts on a computer.
“I design everything on the computer first,” Hochhalter said. “All of my layouts are done on the computer first. So, I can really concentrate on the flow of the artwork and the color palette and then represent it so that the client can see exactly how it’s going to look on the surface.”
The Clay City USA Foundation wanted to make sure this mural showed the community as a whole and they even asked members of the community what they thought should be in the mural.
“The mural has in it different parts of our town, Schuck said. “It gives an idea of what our town values are, as well as our history. It shows information from our pottery to our local sports teams, to farming, to logging, which are all big parts of our community and then some other pieces that are particular to our town’s history.”
One reason why Hochhalter likes to do artworks like these is because of her love for public art.
“It enhances the community,” Hochhalter said. “You’re willing to put funds forward to beautify your community and it beautifies, it draws a community together, and it just brings a space to life. So public art is just fascinating to me in all forms.”
Hochhalter wants to depict what Clay City is all about
“I hope that when they see the mural that they it just brings them joy and that they have pride in their community and that they know that they are represented when people drive through town,” Hochhalter said. “They can see this community and illustration of this community basically and what their values are and how they live their lives.
Hochhalter is grateful for all the support she has received while working on the mural.
“I just want to thank the people of Clay City for all of their great comments about the mural, and how much they’re enjoying the process,” Hochhalter said. “A lot of people have stopped to say, how much they think it’s livening up downtown, and they just love it and I appreciate all of their comments and enjoy seeing people enjoying my art.”
The funding for this mural came from a grant from the Wabash Valley Community Foundation of Clay County and the Clay City USA Foundation provided some of the funding for this project, too. Community and business members also chipped in on the funding and got the chance to sponsor some of the blocks on the mural.
To learn more about some of the artwork Hochhalter has done in the area like the Clay City mural, Larry Bird mural, the Terminal building mural in Terre Haute, the Alabama mural in Brazil and so many more, or if you want to reach out to her about a possible painting project you would like her to do, just click here to visit her website.
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