Savannah Mural Project

Some artists are making one Savannah neighborhood a bit brighter.

They are creating works of art for everyone to enjoy.

As News Three's Alice Massimi shows us, it's a work in progress that will hopefully spread to other parts of the community.

Katherine Sandoz admits this is the largest painting she's ever done...

At roughly 100 feet by eight feet Sandoz has her work cut out.

She admits she is a little scared and excited about the project.

“I've certainly been thinking about how to do it the last couple of months but it just took a few hours to do the painting with Doctor Z and Matt and I kind of got the hang of it.”

The mural is a painting of Turtle Island, which is off the coast of Georgia. It's the first mural of it's kind in Savannah.

Part of a program called SEE S.A.W., or See Savannah's Art Walls it's located on the corner of Habersham and 34th Street.

“Last year we started painting on this wall and ran into some problems with proper permission from the city so we worked for a year to develop a city wide mural policy,” explains Matt Hebermehl.  

Hebermehl is one of the founders of SEE S.A.W.

He and fellow artist Dr.Z came up with the idea after noticing a lack of public art.

“The whole community has ownership of the piece rather than just a piece sitting in someone's house.”

Funded by the community via Kickstarter, an online platform to raise money for creative projects it's something everyone can enjoy.

“You are engaging people not only through the aesthetic of the wall but we are out here painting and people will have questions of what we are doing and you get to explain,” points out Hebermehl.

A learning experience for all including Sandoz who’s honored to be involved.

“I think the partnership between the beauty of the city and the skills of the artist are essential and i am hoping to see a lot more public art in the city,” says Sandoz.

The mural is expected to be completed on Thursday.

It will remain for about three to four months and then another artist will be invited to paint a mural at the same location.