Art students paint the town, and this is just the beginning

Hoping to “jumpstart a new theme of public art downtown,” Arthouse owner Kandi Jamieson and her students are working on a colorful public mural, located on the Girly Steel Studio building.


Jamieson had the opportunity to do a public mural while living in Boise, but said “I was intimidated and never did anything with it. I regret that.”

As luck would have it, after a previous Arthouse story was published, artist and welder Joanie Drizin of Girly Steel Studio mentioned to Jamieson that Billie Caldwell, owner of the Girly Steel Studio building, was interested in having a mural painted on it.

Caldwell even offered to supply all of the materials for the project.

Jamieson put together a mural painting class and enrolled ten students. The students collaborated on a design and made it come to life a few weeks ago when a string of nice days was conducive to starting the project.

“I have never done an outside public mural until this,” Jamieson said. The students hadn’t either, and they’ve enjoyed the process of watching their vision come to life. Jamieson plans to continue the mural painting with subsequent classes, and she has a couple more locations for public art already lined up. She’s been excited to see the enthusiastic response so far.

“There’s a lot of public art in Boise, a lot more art on the historic buildings, sculptures, fountains. We want a bigger arts district here in Noblesville.”

The mural, located at 336 S. 8th St, between Hannibal and Division, is about half done and will end up wrapping around the entire building.

Through the month of April, Arthouse has student works on display at the Hamilton County Public Library, and another session of classes begins this week. Visit www.arthousenoblesville.blogspot.com or call 773-0038 for details about classes or the mural painting.

If you’ve noticed the daffodils blooming in previous springs at the corner of State Roads 37 and 32 in front of the Noblesville sign, those are the efforts of committed volunteers of Keep Noblesville Beautiful (KNB), an organization working to improve the community through educational and community action programs.


KNB’s daffodil initiative, which began in the Fall of 2009 and is sponsored by Kroger, is a welcome springtime sight in Noblesville. The ongoing project will eventually encompass gateways to the city as well as major thoroughfares. More daffodil plantings should be visible this Spring at the gateway at Hamilton Town Center on East 146th St.

Keep Noblesville Beautiful has several upcoming events, starting with the Highway 37 Cleanup on Saturday, April 16. The Cleanup will focus on the section of Highway 37 from State Road 32 up to 191st St.

On Friday April 29, KNB will be celebrating Arbor Day on the Southeast side of the Courthouse Square by giving away 400 small Red Oak trees and raffling a large tree, starting at 10 A.M. Planting and care instructions will be included with each tree, and Master Gardeners and Tree Stewards will be on hand to answer questions.

The annual Spring Blitz will take place May 21st in the Lincoln Circle area of town, which encompasses 10th Street to 16th Street in the general area of the Middle School. The Blitz is an effort to focus on one particular area and provide help for residents by doing whatever landscaping or upkeep work that needs to be done.

Volunteers or Groups are welcome to help with the Highway 37 Cleanup or the Spring Blitz. Keep Noblesville Beautiful is also growing its membership. Dues are $20 annually for an individual or $25 for a family.

Visit www.keepnoblesvillebeautiful.org or call for more information, to volunteer, or to become a member.