‘The Greens’ soccer field gets reds, blues and yellows in public art project
DANIEL CLIFTON • PICAYUNE EDITOR
MARBLE FALLS — Susan Yewell loves the idea of public art — the type that brings a bare wall to life and gets people talking. So when she looked at the green-walled concession stand of the Granite Country Youth Soccer Association’s “The Greens” field in Marble Falls, she didn’t see a cinder-block building, she saw potential art.
More specifically, a mural.
“I’m such a big fan of public art,” she said. “Art itself is just so important. It adds a dimension that’s really necessary on a human level. It brings beauty. A community without public art is so bland.”
With the go-ahead to put a new look on the GCYSA building, Yewell only lacked one thing: artists. Though an art advocate, she’s not a muralist. Fortunately, she knew one: Lyndon Crowson.
Crowson and his wife, Sheila, settled in the Highland Lakes after moving from Houston, where he was an artist. Yewell wasn’t afraid to reach out to the Crowsons for their assistance.
Crowson saw it as an opportunity to liven up the building and even give the youth and parents who frequent the field something to talk about. Art, he added, isn’t just a static creation but something that generates feelings and reactions.
Along with the Crowsons, Yewell garnered support from a number of local businesses, which donated supplies and money. During a stop at Home Depot, while Yewell was fording all the paperwork and other things that came with getting donations from the home improvement store, an employee reached into his own wallet and made a personal donation.
“It’s just been amazing the support we’ve seen,” Yewell said.
Crowson began working on the first phase of the project about four or five weeks ago. He added graphics and art to the front of the concession area where people purchase food and items.
“Art can also be a message,” he said has he considered adding a shadow to a painting of a drink and straw. “There’s ways of showing people what’s available or what’s here other than a boring sign that says, ‘Drinks.'”
The Crowsons were wrapping up the concession front Nov. 6 in preparation for the soccer association’s end-of-season tournament Nov. 8. After that, the Crowsons and Yewell planned to work on a larger mural on the south side and, eventually, the north side of the building.
“For those, we’ll probably need more volunteers and donations,” Yewell said. But she’s committed to the concept of adding public art to the area and not afraid to ask businesses and individuals for assistance.
Just ask the Crowsons.
But they agree with Yewell’s mission and want to help bring more art to where people can see and experience it every day — whether it’s a sculpture on Main Street or a mural on a concession stand
“Art is uplifting,” Crowson said. “Personally, for me, color is so powerful. Art makes you think and feel in ways other things don’t.”
daniel@thepicayune.com
