by Kirby Lindsay, posted 27 June 2012
In 1995, I heard the presentation Patrick Gabriel – then a local resident – made to the Fremont Arts Council (FAC) about painting a mural on the northern retaining wall of the Highway 99/Aurora Avenue underpass at North 38th Street. He suggested a mural that would brighten the area, and give everyone who passes by there something visually interesting. His proposal would become the Aurora Bridge Mural.
The assembled crowd (at that time, monthly FAC meetings drew in 40 – 50 people) encouraged him with a show of overwhelming enthusiasm. When, by phone in February 2012, I spoke directly with Gabriel for the first time, it was disappointing to hear that the enthusiasm didn’t extend to volunteer action. Gabriel told me that he painted nearly all of this incredibly large mural (the wall spans over 550 feet) alone.
As Time Marches On
In February and March, Gabriel and I spoke by phone and traded e-mails about the mural and its legacy – and long-term impact. Now living in Florida, Gabriel said that he has found success there with his art – all private works for private display. The Aurora Bridge Mural remains his only existing public art work. (He did design another mural, in Florida and painted by people from the community, and sometime later painted out by the landlords – without any warning or notification.)
Gabriel originally painted the Aurora Bridge Mural, over March and April of 1996, without any substantial assistance from the FAC, he recalled. During the process, he sustained a serious physical injury and paid, out of his pocket, for the materials – beyond those donated by Daly’s Paints and AA Rentals.
Since then, as he has struggled to find success, he has also worked to protect his reputation, and his works. Doing a Google search for images of his works earlier this year, he found photos I had taken and posted on Fremocentrist.com. These photos, of the mural as it exists today, no longer reflect his true talents, he explained, when we first spoke. The mural as it is in 2012 doesn’t honestly represent him, and his abilities, in a good light, he wrote by e-mail.
A Reputation To Protect
Since installation of the Aurora Bridge Mural the piece has sustained substantial graffiti damage. It has also endured, not always very well, southern UV exposure, wind, rain and the constant blizzard of hard, gritty road dust.
Immediately after painting the mural, Gabriel did gift the FAC with numbered paint cans and a mock-up chart that showed the mural and a chart of what colors went where. He deliberately avoided using blended colors. The image is created from blocks of single colors, with no blending between colors, so that graffiti tags could easily be painted over even by those lacking technical and/or artistic expertise.
Over the years, ‘painting parties’ were organized by the Fremont Arts Council, the Fremont Neighborhood Council (FNC) and even a few private citizens acting autonomously. After a few years, the numbered cans were used and discarded, and the mock-up disappeared in chaos that is an Arts Council, all-volunteer organization.
Volunteers continued to ‘fix’ or ‘repair’ the mural, and with each coat they alter the original piece – as it was designed and painted by Gabriel. Alterations that Gabriel has written that he did not give authorize, on a work that still carries his name – and his copyright.
Gabriel still retains a copyright for the Aurora Bridge Mural, done in a style he used to call ‘People’s Art’ but now describes as ‘Cafe Art.’ When altered, by graffiti or good will, the Mural remains a piece of his work but no longer representative of his talent.
In the Artist’s Republic of Fremont, perhaps more than any other community, we must appreciate the will of an artist to protect his work and reputation. As Gabriel told me, “the community supports creativity like no other I’ve been in.”
A Possible Solution – Oblivion
In 2009, after being alerted about the damage to the mural and being asked to return and help restore the mural, Gabriel decided that his work had been to extensively defaced. He decided that it would be best to have the work removed, and allow another artist to create art there.
He does not think restoration possible, and so he gave permission to the Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) Bridge Maintenance to paint out the Aurora Bridge Mural. He thought it had been done, until early 2012 when he saw images of it posted here.
In April, he sent an e-mail letter to the FAC, FNC, Fremont Chamber of Commerce and City of Seattle officials to propose a new mural for the underpass. This time he would want to be paid, and get community assistance with the paint work. He wrote that the existing mural “has become a blight to the community and no longer a good example of my art.” He said that, in September 2012, he would resume his discussion with Bridge Maintenance (perhaps this time with the Seattle Department of Transportation – the State owns the bridge but the City owns the road beneath it) to have the existing mural painted over.
A Rift Between Art & Gift
In 1996, Gabriel sent a letter to Mayor Norm Rice detailing the completion of the Aurora Bridge Mural, which he described as “an art-gift to the public, visitors, and local communities of Seattle.” A gift that has been used, and abused, and refurbished, and still remains in the hands of the recipients.
Is this a piece of art, and representative of an artist, or a gift accepted and appreciated? Or both – and if so, is there a middle ground to be found?
If you want to share your own opinion on the Aurora Bridge Mural future, consider contacting the Fremont Chamber at director@fremont.com Or, contact City of Seattle Department of Neighborhoods District Coordinator, Jenny Frankl, at jenny.frankl@seattle.gov
In speaking with Gabriel this past spring, I feel I failed to convey the affection and appreciation the Aurora Bridge Mural inspires in our community. If you want to share your story of your own experience of the mural, send it here, to Fremocentrist.com, at instigator@box2219.temp.domains
Related Articles
- Fremont Public Art Inventory, Part V: Murals
- by Kirby Lindsay, September 9, 2011
- FNC Highlight Reel: Of Public Art, Playgrounds & Land Use
- by Kirby Lindsay, June 4, 2012
©2012 Kirby Lindsay. This column is protected by intellectual property laws, including U.S. copyright laws. Reproduction, adaptation or distribution without permission is prohibited.