A recent rainy day gave artists Alecia Vera Buckles and Briah Gober a much needed reprieve. I met the duo at Gober’s studio on Union Street to discuss the mural commission they have been pouring their energy into for the past several months.
Ashley Parrot, the curator of the new Kinley Hotel at Chattanooga’s Southside, approached Buckles in October, thanks to mutual community connections. The proposal: an outdoor mural on the brick exterior of the hotel, dubbed the neighborhood’s living room.
Contracted by Vision Hospitality to convey the idea of “Togetherness” the artists are painting the Kinley’s south-facing wall. The mural will feature 23 colors, roughly 13 to 15 gallons of paint,with an additional 30-40 paints for the drip method portions.
“They’ve never hired anyone to do a project this big, and we’ve never done a project so big,” Buckles says, indicating the risks involved for both the artists and for Vision Hospitality. “They believed in us and the creative freedom we have been afforded gave us confidence.”
The theme was to be executed in “storyline” format—unfamiliar territory for both Buckles and Gober, who tend to work more abstractly. The format’s challenge pushed the friends’ creativity as they worked to come up with two separate designs to pitch for the commission. Neither had done commission work before and both were more skilled at abstract art.
This undertaking was a first in many ways. It is by far the largest piece for either artist; it is the first work that necessitated logistical planning and the first large scale outdoor mural. At an impressive 45 ft x 35 ft the dimensions alone were intimidating.
Inspired by the Kinley Hotels mission to curate the space with only local female artists, Buckles set to work, focusing on the grid design inherent to mural work.
“Grid lines led me to think of female relationships, and in particular, quilts. The way quilt-making relates to the South, and how the thread relates to community and togetherness, particularly in stitching circles. With both of us born here, it’s coming full circle,” Buckles said with a sincere smile.
“This was something neither of us could have ever planned,” Gober, a UTC marketing major and self taught artist adds. “We never planned this—we flow.”
“This has been a beautiful experience. Chattanooga is such a launch pad, such a place of acceptance, the city has been so helpful, supportive. Other artists have just as much of a shot as we do. This is not just for people who have been doing it forever.”
Alecia, a BFA graduate of Shorter University in Rome, GA, says that art became her full-time gig once COVID hit. Before, she worked at various positions in hospitality and at event venues. “The project has come together fairly quickly considering the scale and location. We were both on board as soon as we were asked, more so because of the hotel’s mission to only display female artists.”
“The painting process has been really fast—we are both such workaholics we can easily spend 12 hrs working on the mural, but it is a full body experience. We squat, kneel, bend and stretch and it gets physically taxing—but in the best way,” Alecia said showing off her bruised shins.The paints and paint supplies are furnished by local paint suppliers— Green’s Design and Supply—the artists are using “safe coat eco-friendly paint.”
“We keep a tight ship. I am huge on sustainability. We have literally reused everything as much as possible.”
The drip method, Gobers’s signature technique, will be incorporated utilizing studio created designs on parachute cloth which will be adhered to the mural with Nova gel epoxy later. It was the only way to combine artwork which is created horizontally, using gravity to pull the color striations, with a vertical surface—the parachute cloth was key.
“We speak in color—not in terms of a story—so for us the theme, and presenting it in an inclusive way was a challenge. Everyone will have their own interpretation. The first design we submitted had hands, the second design had figures. We were asked to replace the figures in the second design with the hands of the first design. Figures always exclude someone, a body, even in silhouette, a figure has gender, size, ability, but we speak in color.”
“Briah’s techniques are very fluid, and we played on her style”
Gober’s technique alludes to growth, a seed-sprout in the lower left corner of the mural nurtured by dripping paint—representing community support—the distinct line being the thread, river, train that brings it all together.
There will be a special feature, the last tour-de-force addition, a nod to both artists’ love of tactile stimulation. “It will be like Edward Cullen in the sunshine. Twinkle” Alecia grins mischievously, referring to the mica-infused paint that will be added in the final phase.
“We are looking at finding ways for everyone to get the lowdown on what it all means. There will be a QR code at the bottom linking to individual artist statements.”
“The mural has been such fun, and a full blown education too!”
“If you don’t take the risk, you don’t gain anything” Briah advises.
Kinley Hotel is slated for a soft-opening this week. To learn more about the artists and their portfolios, visit instagram.com/aleciavera/ and instagram.com/lovelyintoxication_/
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