Downtown Waupaca’s latest mural
By Angie Landsverk
A second mural was recently completed on a downtown Waupaca building, and a third mural project is underway in the city.
Dort De Wild is the artist behind the mural on the side of the Waypoint Financial Solutions Inc. building.
“A place to be me” is its theme.
The mural features waves, circles and bright colors.
Suzanne Udoni is the owner of Waypoint Financial Solutions, which is located at 109 E. Badger St.
The mural is on the side of the building that faces Jefferson Street.
She said the theme is a connection to the “You belong in Waupaca” mural next door on the building owned by Bob and Christine Faulks.
Udoni watched mural artist Chad Brady paint the mural on the former Waupaca Area Chamber of Commerce building a year ago.
“I thought what a neat movement,” she said.
Udoni likes to support the arts and initially talked to Brady about ideas for her building.
That was followed by conversations with De Wild and Marci Reynolds.
Reynolds is the president of the Waupaca Community Arts Board.
She connected the Faulks with Brady.
Selecting a local artist
Knowing there are many artists in the Waupaca area, Udoni was interested in sponsoring a local one.
“I’ve known Dort for years,” she said. “I love her style.”
De Wild taught art at Waupaca Middle School for 31 years.
She retired several years ago, and was among those involved in painting Waupaca’s downtown crosswalks in the summer of 2019.
Udoni was not interested in having a mural related to her business painted on the side of her buiding.
One of the first ideas was around a theme of welcoming people to Waupaca.
De Wild presented a few different ideas to Udoni.
“She knew she wanted water,” De Wild said of Udoni.
That was a nod to the Chain O’ Lakes and the rivers in the area.
“And she’s also a real color person,” De Wild said.
The theme was finalized in early summer.
She planned to paint the mural right on the building’s stone.
However, De Wild learned through research that would not be conducive.
As a result, she instead used sign board for the mural.
De Wild worked on the mural in her garage, doing so off and on throughout June and July.
Creating the mural
She wanted the mural to show action and movement.
The circles in the mural could be like bubbles in water.
“They just seem to pop up in my work a lot,” De Wild said.
She also painted circles on the sidewalk, reflecting the circles seen on the panels.
When her work on the mural was completed, she brought it to the building and installed it.
De Wild said the engineering was probably the most difficult aspect of the project.
“I’ve had a lot of good feedback,” she said of her work. “Everybody’s been very positive.”
This was the first time she created an outdoor, public mural.
Through her years of teaching, she did a lot of work on murals with students.
Those were inside of buildings.
De Wild appreciates how Udoni trusted her to do this project and that “everybody’s enjoying it.”
She said Udoni wanted it to be a place where someone could take a picture for graduation.
“I would love it to be a place where kids take a selfie,” Udoni said. “I’ve seen a couple people out there. I saw a family take a picture next door and then walk over and take one.”
Meanwhile, artist Leif Larson is working on Waupaca’s latest mural project.
That one is on the side of the Antiques on Main building.
Read about Larson’s work in an upcoming issue of the Waupaca County Post.