"Shopping is My Outlet" Mural, 2017
Back in October of 2017, I spent a few days drawing with giant sharpies all over a temporary wall at the Outlets of Des Moines.
Liz Lidgett put out a call for mural artists and I put together my first ever mural pitch for this project at the Outlets of Des Moines.
The Outlets were preparing to officially open and looking for two artists to beautify temporary walls on their new property.
The wall measured approximately 100 ft x 8 ft. I used giant Sharpie markers, paint markers and Sherwin-Williams paint in the Outlets of Des Moines’ brand colors. During the work days it both rained and hit 80 degrees, a typical Iowa October. The team at the Outlets were great to work with. I was able to pop in my headphones and get to work for about 4-6 hours a day over the course of 3 days.
The coolest part of the project?
The mural served as a giant coloring book on opening night! Attendees were able to “color” in the mural with the brand colors, adding their own piece to this community mural. [Thanks for capturing these moments of artists in action, Chris Maharry.]
The mural became a popular “instagrammable” spot for shoppers (including style icon Carson Kressley). When the Outlets of Des Moines opened the expansion of their space in late 2018, the wall was torn down.