Following the official signing of a contract with the City of Des Moines on May 26, artist Chandelle Anderson has begun creating a wall mural at Southwest 219th Street between Marine View Drive and 7th Avenue South in the Des Moines Marina district.

It is the culmination of an almost four-year effort by the Des Moines Arts Commission to secure a site for a public art project to honor aging through grants from the Des Moines Legacy Foundation.

The long search for a suitable site met several road blocks, but the present site received wide approval with its southern exposure and central location. Part of the complex, which includes Des Moines QFC, is owned by David Yee. The wall is currently painted white, and Anderson's vibrant 12' x 37' foot mural will soon cover it.

The mural depicts a contemporary vision of the elderly interacting with young people in a variety of simple tasks, portraying wisdom and self fulfillment, passing from one generation to the next.

The setting is a realistic outdoor scene by the water on a summer evening.
Working in high pigment acrylic resistant to UV rays and primed with two coats of primer and three coats of varnish, the mural should last many years, Anderson said.
She'll be working on scaffolding and a scissors lift during the painting, which should be completed in less than six weeks, weather permitting.

"If people stop by at the beginning and see lots of bright red and hot pink colors, they shouldn't be concerned," Anderson said. "It's just underpainting."
Anderson graduated summa cum laude in 2005 with a bachelor of arts degree in painting from Minnesota State University, and has won a number of awards.

Her sketches and vision received unanimous approval from the arts commission in a "blind" viewing of entries, said Recreation Coordinator Nic Lind, who handled the details for the Parks and Recreation Department.
This isn't her first mural-painting experience. Last summer she was invited back to her home town of Huron, South Dakota, where she painted a 20 x 180 mural as part of a historic restoration project.
In fact, she said, she loved Des Moines at first sight.

"I connected emotionally with Des Moines at once," Anderson declared. "It's a lot like home."