AUGUSTA, GA – On the corner of Wrightsboro Road and Highland Avenue sits a clear well, a holding facility for treated water. When the brick veneer surrounding it started deteriorating and threatened to collapse, creative measures were taken instead of just replacing the bricks.

Enter The Art Factory.

They put their heads together with the Augusta Utilities Department, and Art on the Wall was born.

“I just can’t say enough how wonderful their vision and their community support has been,” said Cindy O’Brien, executive director of The Art Factory, about the utilities department. “They’ve been very open, very helpful and they’re very excited about what’s on the wall.”

Phase I of the project, a mural on the wall facing Highland Avenue, was recently completed.

Artists Russ Bonin, Richard Worth and Raoul Pacheco have depicted the Savannah River, illustrating the natural beauty and both recreational and industrial uses. Augusta landmarks are also highlighted including the Butt Bridge, Sacred Heart and Port Royal. The towers of Plant Vogtle can be seen in the distance.

“It was a challenge for the artists but they were excited about the challenge,” said O’Brien.

The artists worked in a high-quality paint, guaranteed not to flake or peel for 25 years. “It’s kind of the gold standard of mural paint,” she said.

As it turns out, the mural was more cost effective than the bricks and shrubs that could have easily been used instead.

“We actually saved a little over half a million dollars in not bricking it back,” said Drew Goins, interim director of the Augusta Utilities Department.

For Phase II of the project, an open call for artists has been announced to paint six large-scale paintings on the Wrightsboro Road portion of the wall.

“We’ve really had some artists come out of the woodwork that we never knew were in our community and that’s the great thing about this public art opportunity is that it really brings the artists out, so that we get to know more of the artists that are in our community,” O’Brien said.

The deadline for entry is Friday, Dec. 4. A jury will decide on the six finalists.
O’Brien hopes the second phase will be completed by June.

Phase III, the wall facing Iris Street, will be completed by groups such as the Boys & Girls Club and give teens an opportunity to study visual arts and learn concepts like color theory. ASU students, under the supervision of Professor Janice Whiting, will also complete a portion of the project.

“We hope the project with the teens will inspire them to discover new things about themselves; how to work together, how to create something they can give back to the community and hopefully inspire them to graduate and go on to college,” O’Brien said.

The third phase will also be a “working wall,” with the wall being repainted every year by different groups. “It keeps it all fresh,” she said.

She anticipates the whole project will be complete within a year.

“I think it’s been very, very positive,” Goins said of the project.

O’Brien sees this as a launching pad for possibly other projects.

“We hope this step in the public art world will grow and we hope it will inspire others to really make more of an effort to create public art in Augusta,” she said.

Artists interesting in submitting work for consideration for Art on the Wall should contact The Art Factory at 706-731-0008 or info@artfactoryinc.org.