Utility Box Murals Completed Throughout Downtown DeKalb

Utility box murals created with artwork by community members have popped up across downtown DeKalb.

The City of DeKalb and its Citizens' Community Enhancement Commission have completed installation of eight utility box murals this year.

The murals are created by using photos of paintings or digital designs to make vinyl wraps. These are then installed on utility boxes, turning the otherwise mundane metal boxes into works of art. The artwork used to create the wraps was submitted by community members.

"I want to thank the talented artists who allowed us to use their original creations to make a more vibrant downtown," said Mayor Cohen Barnes. "Their artwork is an excellent example of the creative people that can be found in DeKalb, and we plan to continue to tap into this creativity to make the City a fun and beautiful place to live, work and visit."

With this year's installations, the City has now completed 11 utility box murals. They are located throughout the downtown between First and Seventh Street and the Vaughn parking lot to Van Buer Plaza. The selected artwork was recommended by the Citizens' Community Enhancement Commission (CCEC).

"The utility box and Paint-A-Plug public art initiatives are great opportunities for community members to showcase their artistic talent," said CCEC Chair Brad Hoey. "On behalf of the CCEC, I wish to thank all the artists for their contributions, and I know the commission will do its part to sustain these public art projects for the foreseeable future."

The artists for this year's utility box murals are Zach and Melissa Beck, Elisa Boughner, Julia Fauci, Rudy Galindo, Tammy Judkins, Brian Livingston, Aaliyah Steele and Trent Taylor.

The utility box murals were funded by a T-Mobile Hometown Grant awarded to the City for public art. Over the past three years, the City and CCEC have put this grant to work to take the City's public arts initiatives to a new level. The grant-funded projects have also included the two-story Belonging mural on City Hall, the 500-foot-long Huskie Pride mural in the Annie Glidden Road underpass and the DeKalb Veterans Memorial Mural overlooking Van Buer Plaza.