By Kevin Haas
Rock River Current
Get our mobile app
BELVIDERE — A new mural that will be unveiled Saturday in the city’s downtown pays homage to the nearly 170-year history of the Boone County Fair.
The 10-by-20-foot piece was created by Brett Whitacre, a Belvidere native whose vibrant murals have brought new life to blank buildings in Rockford and across the country.
The Boone County Arts Council, which commissioned the mural, said its goal is to work with local artists to showcase local history. Whitacre, who now lives in Rockford, is a 1994 Belvidere High School graduate and his father still lives in the Belvidere.
“We can point to this very proudly and say this is one of our own,” said Debbie Carlson, co-chairperson of the Boone County Arts Council’s mural committee. “It just gives you a feeling of pride to show positivity going on in the community with all the negative things that are happening in the world. It’s just a moment to reflect.”
More murals: Art in an alleyway: New Rockford mural project shows art can live in different spaces
advertisement
The mural is being unveiled as part of Heritage Days, a two-day celebration in downtown. It’s located at 424 S. State St. on Maria Martinez’s Country Financial building, which is just north of Buchanan Street.
“It’s in the heart of downtown. … As you come over the railroad tracks, you’ll be able to see it,” Carlson said. “It will just pop there.”
More Belvidere: Property tax relief helped ‘seal the deal’ to bring $1.2B Walmart distribution center here
It’s in a municipal parking lot that’s flanked by two other murals.
“It’s kind of an outdoor gallery,” Whitacre said. “It’s a pretty cool spot.”
Whitacre’s work replaces a previous mural that was painted on panels affixed to the side of the building. He’s worked on it in his Rockford studio over the past two weeks, and it will be reinstalled Friday and covered until a 3 p.m. unveiling on Saturday.
It incorporates various aspects of agriculture that are key to the history of the Boone County Fair, which dates back to 1855 and is among the tops in the state for attendance year after year.
“This one has a lot of detail compared to some of my other murals that I do with larger sections of color,” Whitacre said. “Each little vignette here is pretty time-consuming. For me, this is more of a challenge kind of mural.”
The 46-year-old artist, who is colorblind, is known for using brilliant colors that jump from the canvas. This project is toned down a bit to match the style that fills building walls in Belvidere.
“I wanted to keep it kind of classic looking,” he said. “The color is kind of toned down compared to what I go for. As a colorblind artist I go for really hot colors that appeal to me.”
More murals: Want to see this new Rockford mural on a T-shirt? There’s a plan in the works
Whitacre still put his signature touch on the mural, with some bright gold colors on internal borders and on the wheels of a John Deere tractor.
The Boone County Arts Council gave Whitacre a vision to follow, and then some freedom to make it his own.
“Brett has a different art style than what we’ve ever had,” Carlson said. “That’s exciting to have a different style of art.”
There are more than 25 outdoor murals across Belvidere, which is dubbed the City of Murals. Whitacre, a former musician who started focusing on the arts about 15 years ago, said he’s proud to have a piece that will be so prominently displayed in his hometown.
“It means a lot. … to now see Belvidere as I know it with one of my pieces incorporated right on State Street as I drive through,” Whitacre said. “I feel pretty special and I feel happy to have been asked to do that.”
Know before you go | Mural unveiling
What: Artist Brett Whitacre and the Boone County Arts Council will unveil the city’s newest mural along with Boone County Fair Queen Maci McCoy, Boone County Fair President Lyle Lee and Belvidere Mayor Clint Morris.
When: 3 p.m. Saturday, June 24
Where: 424 S. State St., Belvidere (Municipal parking lot No. 3 along S. State St., just north of Buchanan Street)
This article is by Kevin Haas. Email him at khaas@rockrivercurrent.com or follow him on Twitter at @KevinMHaas or Instagram @thekevinhaas.