Eatery welcomes mural Artwork highlights local attractions
SLIPPERY ROCK — The borough has a new tour guide.
The newcomer sits about 12 feet high on the side of North Country Brewing Company. He's part of a new 16-by-8-foot mural that will be placed on the building this week that highlights several area attractions, including the Old Stone House, Rock Falls, Old Main and the new gazebo in the borough.
The man, dressed as an old-fashioned barker with a circus, has no official name, but is affectionately called "Bob" by Slippery Rock artist Sean Swihart, who designed and painted the mural. The name is a tribute to the brewing company's owner, Bob McCafferty, who agreed to have the mural on the side of his building.
Ideas of the locations on the mural just came to Swihart from his own experience of living in Slippery Rock for 15 years with his family, he said. McCafferty and members of the development group also gave him some ideas, he said. The colorful painting also features a blue sky with white clouds, spring time flowers, a sleeping fisherman and some surprises.
"There are hidden images that people need to find," he said.
Swihart also designed two placards or "sandwich boards," to attach to the sides of the mural. These additions can be taken down and changed, depending on which special events need to be advertised, he said. The first two will promote the upcoming VillageFest and Brew Fest on Sept. 13.
Swihart estimates he spent a total of 120 hours on the mural.
The artwork was funded by a grant obtained through Slippery Rock Development. The development company secured $500 for the mural from the Venango Center for Creative Development, a program of the state Council on the Arts.
Jane Burger, member of Slippery Rock Development, said McCafferty also contributed some funding for the mural, in addition to providing the location and equipment needed to hang it.
The mural fits in well with the town's recent $5.4 million downtown revitalization project because it further promotes Slippery Rock as a destination, Burger said.
"It's like a map of area attractions," she said. "An old-fashioned barker is showing people that this is the place to visit. The idea is what in this region is exciting to see."
