Four Score and 7&7

“Four Score and 7&7”

-This project was painted in collaboration with Main Street Inc., as well as the City of Lawrenceburg, IN. I was assisted with painting this mural by the very talented Matt Grote.

The main and most important goal when setting out to design and paint this mural was to represent and celebrate all things “Lawrenceburg”, past and present.

Bourbon Whiskey has been a staple of Lawrenceburg since its founding in 1802. The largest elements of the mural depicts two figures working to roll out barrels of of the world famous Seagrams bourbon. The caps of each barrel clearly identifies that these are in fact J.E. Seagram and Sons barrels of bourbon whiskey (a famous distiller originating in Lawrenceburg). The name of the mural was derived from a famous cocktail- Seagrams 7 & 7up. Four score is a reference to Abraham Lincoln, who stopped in Lawrenceburg in 1861 to give a pre-inaugural speech from his train car.

The movement and direction of these workers and barrels also works well compositionally with the shape of the actual wall. From the top left, these figures slowly expand outwards towards the right of the wall. I built the rest of the design based on this directional movement.

There is a flats boat out in front of the largest barrel, floating down the river, filled with whiskey barrels. This is a nod to the past of Lawrenceburg. In the beginnings of the town, this was the main method of transporting whiskey from the distillers. The flat boat also works well with the compositional line work and movement of the barrels.

In the bottom right there is a scene of a figure on a canoe rowing through a flooded part of Lawrenceburg. When I began researching for this mural design, the importance of the river to the city’s history was paramount. It was how goods were transported, how people traveled, but also how the community struggled with the seasonal floods. I felt it was important to not just represent the truly great things about Lawrenceburg, but also the struggles that helped to build a strong and resilient community.

The canoe, along with the two bicyclists, also represents the activities happening in modern day Lawrenceburg. The Clock Tower, train, and hanging light fixtures are also elements that can be found in today’s Lawrenceburg. The hanging lights also represent Main St.’s logo, as well as a common element found in my other work.

The design as a whole is meant to represent the buzz of the downtown energy that can be found and felt in today’s Lawrenceburg. There are activities constantly, and new projects being implemented all over the town. Bold and bright, filled with energy. This mural is meant to reflect and amplify that energy.

-The mural is located at 29 E High St., Lawrenceburg, IN 47025

-Acrylic on Brick

-71’ x 45’

-6/10/21 - 7/26/21