Art, fashion and politics often intersect, but when they did recently downtown it created a thing of special beauty.
Model: Casey Craig. Tape/Body Art: Lauryn Theriot, FlutterBye Creative. Photographer: Jesse K. Butler, Weird Rabbit Photo.
Just days after the Russian invasion of Ukraine, downtown’s
Big Sun Studios sponsored a mural that features the country’s flag and national flower, the sunflower. The artwork, located at the corner of Marshall and Crockett Streets, shows local support for a country fighting to retain its sovereignty and protect its population and reminds us daily of a war being fought for freedom half a world away.
Mural on the corner of Marshall and Crockett Streets.
Mural artists Michael Miller, Anthony Benedetto, and Big Sun’s Julian Tizian were working on the piece during the downtown Artwalk on Friday, March 4, when Lauryn Theriot of FlutterBye Creative and Jesse K. Butler of Weird Rabbit Photo came by. “When we were leaving The Lot,” Lauryn tells me, “we just randomly walked up on some friends painting the mural. Jesse and I had been brainstorming ways to pay tribute to what’s happening in Ukraine through our art. So of course, I asked permission to use it as our backdrop.”
Model: Casey Craig. Tape/Body Art: Lauryn Theriot, FlutterBye Creative. Photographer: Jesse K. Butler, Weird Rabbit Photo.
The crew wanted to portray a moody and uncomfortable emotion that is evident in the photographs.
Model: Casey Craig. Tape/Body Art: Lauryn Theriot, FlutterBye Creative. Photographer: Jesse K. Butler, Weird Rabbit Photo.
Model Casey Craig was body painted and tape art was applied to create the look. The crew featured Theriot, photographer Butler and videographer Clint McCommon of Fairfield Studios. Lauryn was pleased with the results. ” In the end, It’s crazy how it all came to together so seamlessly,” she says. “I absolutely love how these came out!”
Model: Casey Craig. Tape/Body Art: Lauryn Theriot, FlutterBye Creative. Photographer: Jesse K. Butler, Weird Rabbit Photo.
