Details
Date
September 1, 2021
Time
10:30 a.m.
Description
WeGo Presents New Bus Shelter Mural
WeGo will unveil a new work of art on Dickerson Pike, near the newly constructed Buffalo Trail Apartments.
Commissioned by LDG Development with help from the Metro Arts Commission, the bus shelter mural was designed and painted by Madison-based artist, Miriam Speyer. The mural contains three distinct segments. The first contains images of grazing buffalos and harkens back to a time when Dickerson Pike was used by herders to take buffalo to market in downtown Nashville. The pathway used was created by the buffalo and Native Americans who lived in the area long before early settlers moved in.
The second panel pays tribute to Madison’s roots in the music industry and the Historic Starday-King Sound Studios—a legendary recording studio located on Dickerson Pike approximately half a mile south of the bus shelter that grew to national and international prominence in the 1950s and 60s when James Brown recorded “Get Up” at the studio. Jimi Hendricks was also a regular session player at the studio when he travelled to the area. Other artists who recorded at the studio include Willie Nelson, Minnie Pearl, and George Jones.
The final panel includes a flurry of colorful magnolia tree flowers and a resting buffalo framing a transparent view of Buffalo Trail Apartments in the background. This panel symbolizes the revitalization taking place along this busy corridor. Speyer says that when considering what images to include in the mural, given the diverse history of the area, she had an abundance of material to consider.
“I really appreciate LDG working with Metro Arts and Culture to secure an equitable review process of local Madisonian artists who recently participated in the Madison on My Mind project through a grant from the National Endowment of Arts,” said Stein Public Leadership for the Arts recipient and Councilmember, Nancy VanReece said. “The results are fantastic, and I couldn’t be prouder of the process.”
Facilitated by District 8 Councilmember Nancy VanReece