May 7, 2021
News File Photo Bay City artist Mark Piotrowski painted this mural in July 2020 on the side of Salon 125 at 125 E. Chisholm St. in Alpena. The mural, called “Wave Journey,” was the second installment in the Fresh Waves project, a public arts initiative to bring new, vibrant artwork to the downtown district.
ALPENA Artist applications are now open for the Alpena Downtown Development Authority’s third Fresh Waves mural project. Applications are due my midnight on May 25.
This is the third year the DDA has facilitated the public art initiative. Fresh Waves started in 2019 when Alpena native Aaron Goldbeck brought the idea for a mural project to the Alpena DDA’s Promotions and Marketing Committee. Golbeck and Chad Bolsinger painted the first mural that summer on the side of Family Enterprise at 211 S. 2nd Ave.
Before cannabis companies began commissioning work from artists for their packaging and other products, they hired them to create art on their stores. At first this was a way to announce the newly legal industry; later it became a way for stores to set themselves apart with increasingly intricate pieces.
As Colorado’s street-art scene continues to grow, more and more cannabis companies are splashing murals across dispensary buildings. Diego Pellicer, Silver Stem Fine Cannabis, Canna City, Berkeley Dispensary, Higher Grade and the Green Solution are just a few of the enterprises that have commissioned artists to paint unique and attention-grabbing murals on their dispensary locations.