Aviation news international – The Meridian Museum Art Collective launched a new mural over the weekend this time paying homage to the Queen City’s history with aviation.
Motorists driving along U.S. Highway 11 past the Meridian Airport should notice the colorful artwork, which is located on the side of Meridian Aviation, the airport’s Fixed Base Operator on Airport Boulevard.
“It is going to look really awesome when it is all through,” said volunteer Ben Ausbrooks. He and his wife, Amy, came out to help paint a section that featured a design of his personal plane, a Skybolt aerobatic biplane, often seen flying in the skies above the airport.
Artist Leslie Carruth said between 25 and 30 people turned out for the collective’s Community Day to help paint the mural despite Saturday’s scorching temperatures. The collective’s artists drew off the mural in a grid system over the last few weeks, so on Saturday the artists and community residents painted in small sections.
Some of the volunteers have helped on the collective’s previous street art painted around town, and others were newbies.
“It was really fun and a little nerve wracking because I didn’t want to mess up anything,” said Brent McBrayer, who along with wife Kasey, painted the silhouette of an airplane.
Monica Cole and Rodney Lard decided to give mural painting a try with Lard saying, “we came out to show our support.”
Still, Bob Purvis said he turned out to help fellow artists finish a project. He said the murals popping up around town have created a positive buzz for the city.
“It always seems to create excitement when people come by to see them,” he said.
The new brightly colored mural, which was a project supported by the Meridian Airport Authority, salutes the Queen City’s ties to aviation going back to the Key Brothers.
The hand-painted artwork features the Ole Miss, a monoplane Al and Fred Key made famous in their flight endurance record at the airport in 1935, as well as a mixture of military and commercial aircraft that use Meridian Aviation’s services, said collective artist Kris Gianakos. Also in the design are a T-45 Goshawk, flown at Naval Air Station Meridian, as well as F-18 jets, a NASA T-38, a Cessna and Ausbrooks’ biplane.
It is the second mural the collective’s artists have painted at Meridian Aviation. A mural on the runway side of the building uses the airfield’s location indicator in a welcome message to pilots landing at Key Field.
Gianakos, who is also a flight simulator instructor at NAS Meridian, said he is not surprised by the response the collective is receiving from the community for its art murals.
“We are not surprised because we think human nature looks for the good in things and this is good stuff,” he said, pointing to the diversity of individuals who turned out to help paint.
“People have always wanted to express themselves,” Gianakos added. “We think it is a very positive thing. We love that it has a kinetic energy that keeps building.”