New Mural Illuminates Backside of Union Transfer

Photo by Steve Weinik

Tomorrow afternoon Union Transfer is hosting a ceremony to dedicate a gorgeous new mural that now adorns its backside. The work, called Amplify, was created by artist Ben Volta, and members of Mural Arts‘ Restorative Justice Guild program. Mural Arts explains how the concept for Amplify, which incorporates radiant stain glass windows and a variety of designs symbolizing “properties of music, sounds and the amplification of voice,” came about:

The large gramophone mural for the Union Transfer music venue began by exploring the architecture and of the building and surrounding neighborhood … The abundance of ornament that wraps the interior of the venue served as a medium for The Restorative Justice GUILD members to reinterpret, blend, form and expand with drawing. GUILD members explored the interior of Union Transfer and took hundreds of photographs. They then drew over photographs and borrowed segments of the building ornament to create a unique design. This exploratory design process eventually led us to combine all of the drawings together to create a large gramophone horn. Many of the unique designs are exploratory and decorative but some are embedded with meaning. For example there is an abstract portrait of a face that is muzzled with an X positioned directly alongside the needle of the gramophone. You can also discover ornamental interpretations of a raised fist and a black beetle. The intensity of the positive energy within is revealed through the window segments.

The grand-viewing ceremony is tomorrow, Wednesday, July 16th, from noon to 2 p.m. More information can be found here.