FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Oct. 4, 2005
Contact: Anika Mitchell Perkins
(662) 329-7124

MUW professor and art student paint mural of 19th century American explorer

COLUMBUS, Miss. -- Alexander Stelioes-Wills, assistant professor of art at Mississippi University for Women, painted an exterior mural this past summer with the help of his painting assistant, Sarah Rose, a senior at MUW.

The Zebulon Pike mural, named after the 19th century American explorer, is located in Louisiana, Mo., in Pike County across the river from Pike County, Ill. Both counties were named after Zebulon Pike because he did not pass through the part of the Mississippi on his first expedition. The mural, which stands about 10x40 feet, was painted on a downtown restaurant called Piker’s.

Pike, who explored the upper Mississippi and Southwest, made some important contributions to the mapping of the West such as discovering Pike’s Peak in Colorado, according to Stelioes-Wills. The Lewis and Clarke expedition overshadowed his expedition.

The mural took three and a half weeks to paint, said Stelioes-Wills, noting the work was done in June.

“Yes, we lost some days to rain, some work to wind and many hours to working in the sun in 95 degree heat next to a brick and metal building,” Stelioes-Wills said. “The wall would get so hot that the paint would dry instantly on the surface. Because of the heat, we would paint from 5:30 a.m. till 1:30 p.m. and then return at 4 p.m. and finish for the day at 7 p.m.”

Requirements of the mural included a portrait of Pike, his name and dates, a view of the Mississippi River, a view of Pike’s Peak, an image of a keel boat on the river and the name and outlines of the two Pike counties.

“One of the most difficult tasks was making the extremely limited palette feel large, natural and atmospheric. Since the building was located in the historic district, all of the paints used had to be based on the town’s accepted historic palette, which did not give us much in terms of well saturated colors,” he said. “So one of our jobs was to create the impression that there was more color there than was actually there. This requires very careful control of contrast and very inventive use of color.”

Stelioes-Wills added that Rose was an invaluable part of the project.

“Not only was she involved in every aspect of the project from washing brushes to mixing paints to drawing and painting, she was the primary painter on the portrait of Zebulon and she did an amazing job.”