Art4Polson to brighten community with six more murals

Sandpiper Art Gallery and Gifts is continuing its Art4Polson program, which has brightened the community since 2024 with public art projects.

Thanks to the Greater Polson Community Foundation, fundraising efforts and individual donors, coordinator Natalie Raffield says Art4Polson will be able to finance six murals in Polson this summer.

Artist Vicky Poole will create a “Welcome to Polson” mural on the side of Flathead Signs and Graphics on Hwy. 93. The giant letters spelling Polson will depict cute pups belonging to the building owner, Jodee Lemm, SKQ Dam, horses on Wild Horse Island and Mike Lemm’s treasured old car.

The side wall at Second Nature Gifts and Goods on Main Street will boast four giant metal panels that each depict a season. The background on the wall will blend each season’s colors.

These panels will be printed from paintings by gallery member Raffield. The originals and prints will be sold to raise money for future public art.

Bobbie Goldberg, owner of Second Nature, in enthused about depicting the animals that people come to Montana to see and some of the attractions that are nearby, namely Wild Horse Island, McDonald Lake, Glacier National Park and The Bison Range.

A fun mural, “Basking Beers, Bears and Beavers,” was designed by cartoon artist Shawn Davis and will adorn the entrance of the Perfect Shot Tavern, also on Main St. The owner, Dusty Kisler, is pictured as a beaver serving behind the bar and Mandy Kisler, wife and co-owner, is portrayed as a cougar grabbing a drink with a friendly bear.

The mural also has an eagle leering from the rafters and a moose drinking “Human Drool” – a play on the popular Moose Drool brand.

“The Secret Life of Black Bears” will adorn 1-800 Water Damage of Western Montana, located on Main and Fourth Ave. Artist Karla Martinson, who has created other murals as part of the Art4Polson project, will paint bears playing in a moss-covered forest and a night scene with an owl in the moonlight.

Business owner Nina Montgomery says she’s excited to help paint as she is also an artist, and loves the muted colors that Martinson has chosen, especially given that her building is black.

Carol Lynn Lapotka, the owner of handMADE Montana, commissioned her graphic artist, Josh Quick, to design a mural for the back of her building. Titled “The Workroom,” it will depict artists and seamstresses at work on all kinds of artful creations.

A high school student, Alexia Wilson, has designed a mural for the underpass at Riverside Park. “Balanced” showcases a cheery sun and bright moon decorating the mountains and shadowing Petra, the Flathead Lake monster.

“This fantastic edition of murals will enhance Polson in a positive way,” Raffield says. She also praises GPCF for its efforts to help Polson’s community thrive, noting that “adding art for folks to enjoy brings people together and fosters a sense of pride.”

Volunteers of all talents and abilities are welcome to help paint beginning in June. Call Ratfield at 303-945-6325 or [email protected] to sign up.

Learn more at www.sandpiperartgalleryandgifts.com/art4polson.

    “The Secret Life of Black Bears” by Karla Martinson will adorn 1-800 Water Damage of Western Montana, located on Main and Fourth Ave. as part of the Art4Polson mural project. (Courtesy photo)