The Northern Lapwing's Song

Recently I had the privilege of conceptualizing and painting a sidewalk mural in front of Portsmouth Ohio’s Port City Pub as a part of Trillium Project’s #SecondGlance initiative. Trillium Project’s #SecondGlance initiative, which aims to revitalize downtown Portsmouth Ohio with public street art. Trillium is made up of many different Appalachian artists many of which got to create murals on sidewalks around town. Trillium Project is managed by Amanda Lewis.
The bird depicted in this mural is a Northern Lapwing: the national bird of Ireland. The music notes above its head, if played would mimic its song. As a bird artist, I simply had to do the bird of Ireland. This is my way of tying an icon of Ireland with music, in this case The Northern Lapwing’s Song.
It would be amiss to not include the glorious digital version I made at the beginning of this process. THIS is what sold the design, and for what felt like forever this was the definitive version of this art piece. Through all the administrative hurdles I had to wait around for, this existed and was just begging to be put to the sidewalk. It may have served its purpose but it doesn’t deserve to be forgotten.
This really helped me
This really helped me
Iteration #1
Iteration #1
Iteration #2
Iteration #2
The Northern Lapwing is also known as the Pee-wit due to the sound it makes. Playing the musical notes above its head will make its sound. As my musical friends can see, it is very high pitched. I would really like to hear it performed. [MUSICAL NOTES] The elements in this mural: the bird, its song, the guitar, and the Celtic knot all bring about the essence of the Port City Pub. The bird’s call is its unique song and it is here to share it with you in an environment that evokes a taste of Ireland thousands of miles away from the source. No matter what, the Northern Lapwing will sing its song for you.
This is the largest canvas I’ve ever worked on and will be seen by hundreds of people!! I’m so thankful for this opportunity and work. It has helped me grow as an artist and make the community happy at the same time!
Links:
Trillium Project • #SecondGlance Initiative
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