Strawberry mural created to celebrate city’s history
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- Tamara Oborn, Heather Deighton and Emily Hammerstad work on the new strawberry mural in Pleasant Grove.
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- The new strawberry mural created in Pleasant Grove.
Courtesy photo
Tamara Oborn, Heather Deighton and Emily Hammerstad work on the new strawberry mural in Pleasant Grove.
A community project has turned into a permanent work of art in downtown Pleasant Grove. Meant to commemorate the city’s history –and the ongoing, annual, week-long celebration — is a new wall of strawberries.
The mural is on the side of a building owned by the TestOut Corporation at approximately 40 South Main Street, in the heart of the historic downtown area of the city.
According to Utah History Encyclopedia, from the 1920s through the 1950s, Pleasant Grove was a major strawberry producer, with fields dotting the area. Strawberry Days, the longest-running city celebration in Utah, was established 101 years ago.
The mural project came to be through a combined effort of volunteers, the Pleasant Grove-Lindon Chamber of Commerce, PG Cares, Us and Art and the TestOut Corporation.
“I have been wanting to paint that wall for years,” said Tamara Oborn, PG Cares coordinator. “We always see pictures of other cities with iconic walls that everyone knows exactly where they are. We wanted that for Pleasant Grove and to beautify Main Street.”
Courtesy photo
The new strawberry mural created in Pleasant Grove.
Oborn, who oversees the city’s Communities That Care Coalition, said that community attachment is a protective factor for children. “Feeling like they belong and having positive feelings toward the place they live does help youth make more positive choices,” she said. “Taking pictures and making memories, like at Strawberry Days or anytime really, can help the community feel more connected and unified.”
Pleasant Grove resident Emily Hammerstad, who recently opened an art experience studio on Main Street, was approached by members of the Pleasant Grove-Lindon Chamber of Commerce about taking on the mural project.
After first contact, she sent a quick mock-up to the chamber and everything rolled from there.
Hammerstad designed the digital image. Then, the stenciling onto the wall was done. After that, painting began. “At first, there were just a couple of us. Then, the last few days, we had a good turnout of eight or nine volunteers each day,” Hammerstad said. The work of actually turning the wall into a piece of art took about a week.
“I have wanted this for years actually and specifically in this spot. So, I’m elated. I’ve done tons of research about what art does for communities. It draws people out. For us to have something, I’m really excited. People go to Provo just to see the murals,” Hammerstad said. “I hope people enjoy it as much as we do.”
The mural was finished on Friday, just in time for Strawberry Days, which began on Saturday. The city’s festivities will run through June 19.
