Richmond Mural Project 2024 – Artist Interviews

Transcript of Video: Off-camera voice of Artist Lexi Lesko: “I don’t want to live in a world with bees and monarch butterflies. It’s about keeping what should be here, here, for everybody’s sake. We all live on this planet together. What affects them, ultimately affects us. I fell in love the natural beauty of the Prairie Trail. When I think of Richmond, I think of this trail. It’s also where that wooden bridge is and it really is that important to this town.” On camera, Artist Lexi Lesko: “Hi my name is Lexi Lesko. I began working as an artist in this area around 2016. I specialize in painted signage, landscape painting, portraiture, but mainly I’m an illustrator. Professionally, I’ve taught art classes to the kids and adults of the area, for a while. I have hand-painted signs for some of the local businesses. I have done face painting at the schools and probably at some of your kid’s birthday parties. I’ve been drawing ever singe I was a little kid and basically, every day since then. I was very lucky to have creative people in my family who always encouraged my growth as an artist. I have already gotten to see the benefits of this mural come to life. This is a central hub for a lot of people. This is where senior photos get to get taken. This is where every town event is gonna meet. Here, and be able to be in front of this. Art is such a magical thing for both the painter, and for the viewer. I think public art is so important because it is accessible to the public. You don’t have to pay admission to see it. You don’t have to buy a subscription to see it. It’s art for the sake of art, it’s beauty for making things beautiful. That’s what it’s for.” Off camera, Sandhill cranes are calling. On camera, Artist Linda Wallis: “I’m Lynda Wallis, of lyndiswallisartistmaker.com. I have been a self-employed artist my entire career. I was a single mom. I have two amazing kids that I raised as a freelance illustrator. It was a crazy, difficult path. Wouldn’t recommend it, but we did okay. As they were being raised, I was very fortunate to start making signs for nature preserves. It set my life on the course that I’ve been on all these years later. On of my friends from the Art Institute, had been working in Richmond Illinois. She was working for Eugene Derdeyn at Perspecto Map Company. I started to work for Eugene, in Richmond. It was my master’s degree. Working for Eugene in his studio, I learned things I never, that were never touched on in the five years I was in private colleges. So when a friend tagged me in a Facebook post about the Village of Richmond looking for mural proposals, and when I read through the prospectus and realized they were looking to incorporate all the conservation and nature, and natural areas that Richmond is surrounded by, that they wanted those to the inspiration for the murals I was thrilled. One of the things that was so spectacular about living in McHenry County and Lake County were the sandhills cranes. They were everywhere. People have been overwhelmingly positive. Someone asked me ‘so are you done with pink?’ and I have to say ‘Absolutely not!’ this is just the beginning. I would encourage everyone to spend as much time with that much pink as they possibly can. It’s a really amazingly uplifting color. Public art is a way of bringing art to people where they are. What you feel when you look at art is perfect. You don’t need to have an art education, you don’t have to know anything about it. What the art makes you feel is exactly right. So public art is an extraordinary experience to bring something that’s free, and available to everybody, and to bring joy into people’s lives. So I think that public art is a wonderful, wonderful thing and I’m so delighted to be part of. It means, it just means so much to me that I was chosen and I got to paint my giant pink crane mural.” Video cuts to black and text appears on screen “The 2024 Village of Richmond Downtown Mural project was made possible by the National Endowment for the Arts. To learn more, visit http://www.arts.gov.” The Village logo appears on screen. Video and music credits appear.