by Chris Cart | American
No mural is complete without at least one dog. This mural has three #119. Alan Stearns and Austin Brown of Hallowell were very generous donors to the mural project. Three Airedales are included in the mural. At left are Rosie and Fergus running with the young man.
Rosie, Fergus, Rufus and now Ace have been great dogs and wonderful, just up the hill neighbors.
artist, Chris Cart
Below is Fergus, waiting patiently as the artist painted his portrait in the mural.
The Hallowell Mural is a publicly funded mural with over 100 generous donors who helped buy the paint, canvas, varnish and keep the artist going over the years of work. Begun in 2018 as an idea over dinner, the mural was finally installed at 89 Water Street, Hallowell, Maine in the summer of 2023 with great fanfare and a celebration with our Mayor George Lapointe, Representative Dan Shagoury and Maine’s Governor Janet Mills all giving talks.
We couldn’t do it without our Sponsors. Thank you!
Grants by:
Maine Arts Commission
Maine Community Foundation
Elsie & William Viles Foundation
Kennebec Savings Bank
Other organization sponsors:
Vision Hallowell
Row House Inc
Ian Parker Foundation
Arts & Cultural Committee
Hallowell Board Area of Trade
There are far too many musicians known in Hallowell to count let alone include on one small section of wall. But music is central to Hallowell’s daily life with our musicians playing at restaurants, bars and our annual festivals.
it would have required several walls this size to do justice to all the musicians who play in Hallowell. These musicians will have to stand in for all the rest.
artist, Chris Cart
Marcia Gallagher, #80, has gigged in rock bands, soul bands, and with jazz combos. She performs solo as a keyboard/vocalist in her hometown of Hallowell and environs. She has been an accompanist, organist, and musical director for theater groups around the region.
With a career that spans over 40 years, Pat has worked as a vocalist, multi-instrumentalist, songwriter and teacher.
Alfred Lund, #81, is a percussionist who gigs with many Maine bands. He creates his own instruments from his custom cajon made from a Klipsch speaker box to ashiko drums fashioned from local woods.
Dave Wakefield, #82, sax, harmonica, plays with many of the best Maine bands.
Steve Vellani, #83, started playing in the Gardiner Common as a teenager. He spent time playing bluegrass mandolin and guitar in Cape Cod before moving to California to launch his first band, Walking Wounded. Then time playing in Cambridge and Sonoma Valley and back to the Cape, finally settling in Hallowell in the ’80’s wiht his wife Barbara to raise their family.
He and Jeff Farnsworth started the the well-known Weasles, then later Vellani launched the Rolling Blackouts, and began the long time tradition of “Hallowell does…” concerts, Hallowell does Neil Young, Hallowell does Tom Petty…
And as he says, “all along playing solos and duos, and really with whoever will have me.” And plans to continue until the fingers no longer do it.
Pat Pepin #84, is a distinguished Maine-based artist known for her exceptional skills as a singer and saxophonist. Her shows are filled with a diverse selection of songs, from blues to Americana, along with her clever original compositions.
Christine Poulson #85, returned to Maine in 2008 and has been active in the local scene since then, covering genres from Americana to jazz. Poulson is mostly known for her rich alto voice, her infectious spirit, and her love of gathering people for common causes.
Sarah Crosby, #86, member of the Whitefields Band and plays rhythm guitar at venues around New England.
Katie Daggett,#87, a singer, songwriter and Maine native known for her “unique blend of adult contemporary” music.
Bob Colwell #88, is a multi-instrumentalist, singer, songwriter and co-founder of the renowned Boneheads. Bob earns his living completely from music. He operates a busy recording studio called “The Root Cellar” in Hallowell, doing gigs around the state with various bands for over 40 years. Married to Cary Colwell.
Josh Shain #89, well-known member of the great Hallowell band Scolded Dogs.
Roger Sampson #90, landed in Hallowell, Maine in 1981, emigrating from it’s once sister city on the coast of Massachusetts, having followed what was left of the breadcrumb trail left behind after the Rolling Thunder Revue passed through town years earlier. Gratefully being adopted by the local music and arts community, he forged deep and lasting musical and personal relationships that continued to his death.
Naoto Kobayashi, #92, a beloved Hall-Dale teacher of Japanese and founder of the Hall-Dale Taiko drumming club.
Ian Parker, #94, a beloved local musician who died far too young. A foundation was set up in his name to help young musicians. Ian Parker Foundation.
Kenny Cox, #114, Maine musician all his life playing in any number of bands, Hole in the Wall Gang, the Band from Uncle, Neat & Clean… He is well remembered for his weekly winter gigs at Sugarloaf, and his Sunday afternoon “Kenny Church” at the Wharf in Hallowell.
Steve Jones, #79, plays electric and acoustic guitar and is one of Maine’s best known band leaders and musicians. He has toured regionally with The Boneheads, Strangefolk, and Dirigo among many others and been a backing musician for Bo Diddley, The Band’s Rick Danko, and The Marvelettes.
Scott Eliot, #96, one of the founding members of The Boneheads, one of Maine’s most respected musicians.
Brett Shain, #98, a lifelong musician and soloist in the legendary musical city of Hallowell, Maine.
Anne Mckee #4, is the young musician playing her violin up near the top of the mural.
She is an extraordinary violinist and a member of Bay Chamber Faculty, from Hallowell, Maine.
Anne was a part of the mural from the earliest sketches.
artist, Chris Cart
Why is she playing her violin sitting high on the projecting beam? I’m not sure, except that having her perched way up there somehow, to me, captured Hallowell’s spirit.
From Bay Chamber website:
“Anne McKee (violin) hails from Hallowell, ME where she began playing the violin at age four. She recently completed her Master of Music degree at Boston Conservatory under the tutelage of Dr. Katie Lansdale.
Some of her musical accolades include first prize in Midcoast Symphony Orchestra’s Concerto Competition, second prize at Peter E. Tannenwald Young Artist Competition, and finalist in Boston Conservatory’s all-school concerto competition. In addition to long-term study with Betsy Kobayashi, Lydia Forbes, and Eva Gruesser, Anne has taken masterclasses with Sergiu Schwartz, Alexi Kenney, Grigory Kalinovsky, and Joseph Lin, as well as members of the Ying, Jupiter, Lydian, and Ariel Quartets. She has enjoyed attending Bowdoin International Music Festival, Green Mountain Chamber Music Festival, Promisek Bach+ Workshop, and Harvard Music Festival.
Most recently, Anne was invited to perform at Music From Salem (NY) as one of two Emerging Artists in their summer concert series.”
On May 3rd, 1762 the first settlers of European descent #109 stepped ashore on the west bank of the Kennebec River, onto the wild lands that would become Hallowell, Maine. Deacon Pease Clark, his wife Abigail, their son Peter, with his wife Zeruah with their young daughter Phoebe, had traveled from Attleborough, Massachusetts, by boat, sailing up the Kennebec River until they came to our familiar bend in the river.
Local legend tells of the Clark’s first night where they had no shelter. The intrepid settlers passed the night under a rough cart they had brought with them, and turned upside-down for their first night’s roof.
The first efforts of the Clarks were devoted to making a small clearing and to the creation of a temporary dwelling. They planted corn and rye upon the burnt land. Before the snows of the following winter fell, these energetic first settlers had hewn timber, procured boards and planks from the mill at Cobbossee, and built a comfortable frame house of two stories in front and one at the rear, according to the fashion of the times; and ever after that, the hospitable doors of the Clark house stood open to welcome all newcomers to this locality.
excerpt from: Emma Huntington Nason, Old Hallowell on the Kennebec., 1909
Their riverfront lot measuring 50 rods wide (about 275 yards), encompassed the land around the current old Cotton Mill in Hallowell. The first woods they cleared for their home and farm is where the old Hallowell Fire department building is, at the corner of Second Street and Perley’s Lane—and incidentally, also where the artist created the mural prior to its installation.
The Clarks acquired land from Benjamin Hallowell, from whom the city gets its name. Benjamin Hallowell was one of four wealthy Boston merchants, the Kennebec Proprietors, who purchased large tracks along the Kennebec from the Plymouth Colony.
In 1629 the Plymouth Colony had been granted land originally claimed by the British monarchy.
Since 1628 Europeans of the Plymouth Colony had operated a small trading post about 2 miles further up river, (near Fort Western). They traded with the local Abenaki peoples until the late 1670’s.
At that point what became known as the “Indian Wars” dissuaded any serious settlement by Europeans or colonists in the Kennebec Valley for almost a century. The New England colonies fought the native people of the Wabanaki Confederacy (the Mi’kmaq, Maliseet, Penobscot, and Abenaki) who were allied with the French of New France over the rights to the lands.
The various land wars resulted in the the killing of so many native peoples that by the final treaty of the King George’s war in 1748 the battles were solely about French or English colonial rule in the area, with the New England colonies prevailing over the French.
The “official” photo journalist of the mural project was Joe Phelan #77, who works for Central Maine Papers. He documented the entire mural process from the early days of mostly blank canvas through the final installation.
You can see his beautiful photo-journal article about the mural at CentralMaine.com.
You can always tell a Phelan photograph by the power of the composition and style of photo journalism. Joe is also a great neighbor.
artist, Chris Cart
Bob Ladd #76, is shown in a blue ballcap with the Hallowell Food Pantry Logo.
Hallowell Food Pantry is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that provides valuable nutrition support to those in need.
Our goal is to help individuals and families maintain their independence and dignity by providing them with access to healthy and nutritious food.
The Food Pantry gave over 81,000 pounds of healthy food to local residents in need last year.
Brothers Joshua Violette #75, and Levi Violette #74, died during the years of the creation of the mural. They are included in the mural as a memory for their parents who were major donors for the mural project. The brothers were much loved in the area.
Gary Violette was a huge supporter of the mural and I painted the well beloved brothers by a way of a small thank you.
artist, Chris Cart
In 2023 the 700 square foot public mural, created by Chris Cart for Hallowell, Maine was unveiled to much fanfare with a flag guard of the American Legion and speeches by Maine’s Governor Mills, Representative Dan Shagoury and our Mayor George Lapointe.
In 2021 Cart was accepted as a Signature Member to the National Watercolor Society.
In 2019 Cart began a many year collaboration with mural master John Gable initially to create two large murals for a venue in the outskirts of Washington D.C. Since that time they have worked together on many more projects, including two more large murals for Gainesville, VA.
Chris Cart has had several pieces chosen for the annual Painting the Figure Now exhibits at the beautiful Wausau Museum of Contemporary Art WMOCA.
Another public commission was a large painting for the new Lithgow Library in Augusta, Maine, Stories from the Mezzanine.
In 2016 ompleted a 21 foot mural for the City of Bath, Maine. The theme is the “Spirit of Bath” which, of course, wraps around the history of shipbuilding in this City of Ships.
In 2015 he finished a public mural for the new Capital Judicial Center in Maine’s capital at Augusta. This 14 x 40-foot mural, a Maine Percent for Art project, called Kennebec is a maritime history of the Kennebec River with people, ships, history.
Over the years Cart has illustrated over 30 books and book covers.
He has had numerous one-man gallery shows and exhibited in galleries across Maine, in Seattle, Washington, New York City and Guadalajara, Mexico.
With a pencil or brush in hand I can create worlds within the canvas frame. The figures are my players and the canvas my stage. However, I am no fantasy artist. Reality creates the spark. My eyes open, I find things that need to be in my paintings.
I have exhibited in galleries and exhibitions in Maine, Seattle and New York City. As an illustrator I have worked for Hearst Books, William Morrow, Greenwillow Books, Random House and DownEast Books of Maine. And creating sets and playbills for theater is a thrill.
Born in Maine, I can claim that much coveted ‘native’ status but in truth I lived away a lot. My bones are solid New England stock but my blood carries the dusts of years in Mexico…and a bit of rust from the Pacific Northwest as well.
Back in my bohemian days I sold paintings at street shows and at the Pike Place Market in Seattle. Today I enjoy the luxury of having my work in a great gallery, but there is an excitement, a rawness to selling art on the street.
I currently live with my wife and fellow painter, Jen Greta Cart, in Hallowell, Maine.
Hallowell has been a cultural center since its early days, attracting artists from all over the region.
To the left, in the bow tie, is Alger V. Currier #104, (1862-1911) a well known Hallowell artist of the mid 19th century. His fine oil portrait of his wife Catherine #103, the woman in the yellow dress, can be seen today at the Hubbard Free Library in Hallowell, a building, incidentally, designed by Alexander Currier, Alger’s father.
The Currier portrait of his wife at the Hubbard library is well worth a trip to see. An fine piece of portraiture.
artist, Chris Cart
Lee Weeks #102, is the renowned Marvel and DC Comic artist. Weeks grew up on Lincoln Street in the center of Hallowell.
Perhaps best known for his art for the Daredevil series for Marvel, his work bringing Batman to life for DC Comics is also iconic.
Weeks has won numerous awards for his art. Weeks is shown here as a drawing, drawing Batman.
Most people ask me, “Why is Batman in the mural?”. The simple answer? Lee Weeks, the renowned D.C. and Marvel comic artist is from Hallowell. I drew Lee, himself as a drawing, drawing Batman. I mean, how could I not include Batman?
artist, Chris Cart
Bruce Mayo #101, is shown here in two of his many roles or guises in town. He is a fine artist, owner of Easy Street Lounge in Hallowell and most years the leader of the Mardi Gras parade.
it is always wonderful to run into Bruce in town.
artist, Chris Cart
Helene Farrar #106, has taught and worked in the visual arts for twenty years while actively exhibiting in commercial, nonprofit and university galleries in New England, New York City, Pennsylvania, Italy, and England. Farrar has a BA in Studio Art from the University of Maine and a Masters of Fine Art Degree in Interdisciplinary Arts from Goddard College in Vermont. Helene was director of the Harlow Gallery of Hallowell for many years.
Mark Poirier #107, shown in the blue ballcap with brushes, is known for his beautiful paintings of Hallowell.
Paola Buentello #105, of Mexican descent, had an art gallery, shop first in Hallowell, then in Gardiner where she exhibited some of her beautiful, very personal work.
Jane Burke #93, painter and muralist has many colorful murals across Maine. Jane is shown in the mural dancing with the musicians with her signature hair. Jane Burke murals
Andrea Dorak #117, is a talented easel painter, interior designer and dancer extraordinaire.
Ellen Parkman Vaughan #100, of the prominent Vaughan family in Hallowell, in the lower right, was known for her watercolors and in her youth intrepid painting trips to the wilds of Maine in a canoe with paints, an easel and a guide.
The Vaughan Homestead has many of Ellen Vaughan’s drawings and watercolors from her treks to the north woods.
artist, Chris Cart
One beloved Hallowell artist from the 20th century was Ray Skolfield #95, . He spent much of his later years in Hallowell drawing local people. Ray is the figure in the back presented as a drawing with his sketchpad—with one of his signature styles of simple line with snags of intense line color.
In his early days in the 1930’s Skolfield was a “New Deal” artist, one of the many WPA Project artists prior to WW2.
Ray was drawing and painting constantly, and giving his work away. I can’t count how many people I know who own one of more of Ray’s creations. I included him in the section of the mural with all the musicians because he spent so much time drawing our local bands.
artist, Chris Cart
Shown here in the witch costume is Jen Greta Cart #67, . She has been painting since she moved to Hallowell in the early 1990’s. She also has been known for your many roles in Gaslight Theater.
Also, Jen launched the “Hallowell Hexen” a troupe of Hallowell “witches” who get dressed as witches to dance in the annual Hallowell Hallowe’en Parade.
artist, Chris Cart
In 2023 Chris Cart #110, completed the 650 square foot public Hallowell mural for Hallowell, Maine. The mural was officially unveiled to much fanfare with a flag guard of the American Legion and speeches by Maine’s Governor Mills, Representative Dan Shagoury and our Mayor George Lapointe.
Cart has over dozen murals across Maine in Washington D.C. and Seattle. F
You can read a full bio here.
I added myself in the lower left, still finishing up part of the mural. There was a while with several setbacks, including COVID that I thought the mural project would go on forever. There was always more to add.
artist, Chris Cart
Deb Fahy #108, of Hallowell has been central to any and all support for artists in the Hallowell area for many decades. She was Executive Director of the Harlow Gallery for 14 years transforming it from a local art club to a gallery of note with shows reviewed by Maine’s best newspapers.
Since her time with the Harlow gallery she has moved on to spearhead the official city Arts & Cultural Committee and the creation of Vision Hallowell, our Hallowell’s 501c3 which promotes arts in our area.
Deb was key to getting the Hallowell Mural project going and keeping the fundraising alive so the artist could complete this vast project.
Deb has been no end of help to me and my career as an artist.
artist, Chris Cart
The international COVID epidemic hit during the period when artist Chris Cart was painting the mural.
Several of the medical workers who kept us as safe as possible are included in the mural:
Dr. Emmy Liscord #71, , Dr. Kieran Kammerer #72, and nurse Tina Netten #73.
Covid gave us a new dark piece of history we lived through while I was working on the mural. It seemed important to include some reference. This was one of several things I added to the original design of the mural, which shook things up, painting-wise, necessitating redesign of parts of the mural.
artist, Chris Cart
