PLATTSBURGH — Sisters Lucretia Maria Davidson and Margaret Miller Davidson, 19th century Plattsburgh creatives, loom bigger than their short lives in “The Poets Mural,” the latest project of Outside Art: Plattsburgh Public Art Project.
New Orleans-based, multi-disciplinary artist Brendon Palmer-Angell atomizes them back into 21st century consciousness on a brown base on the east bank of the Saranac River at 63 Bridge St. in Plattsburgh.
“It’s two poet sisters,” he said.
“They were born here. Two young creatives from Plattsburgh that have been dead for a couple of hundred years. It’s an honor to be able to bring them back to life to Bridge Street. It has been a lot of fun so far. People, generally, didn’t know who they were. I didn’t know who they were until we started planning this project. It’s been really fun to know more of Plattsburgh’s creative history and try to bring it back to life on the wall.”
Since Palmer-Angell started the project this month, he has danced around the rain.
“I am thinking about the amount of time that I have,” he said.
“I’m here until the 13th. I am thinking about materials, the number of spray cans that I have in those specific colors. So, I’m going to do the portraits and the hands fully rendered, and then I’ll come back and add to the clothing as much as I can. We’re also adding a quote at the bottom or on the side. A couple of lines from one of the poems.”
On Day 3, he blazed the top half of Margaret’s portrait before he called it quits at 7 p.m. His others works in town are the “Jean Arthur Mural” and the “Reach for the Stars! The Michael Anderson Mural.” For more about him, visit brendonart.com
BACKGROUND
“The Poets’ Mural” is an OA collaboration with Clinton County Historical Association and Museum and the City of Plattsburgh.
Once known as the “Poetess of Plattsburgh,” Lucretia Maria Davidson was born in Plattsburgh in 1808, according to a press release. Her work has largely been forgotten, but during her time it was praised by writers like Robert Southey and Edgar Allan Poe. Her sister, Margaret Miller Davidson, was born in Plattsburg in 1823. Margaret wrote from a young age, producing a body of poems and a diary. After her death, Margaret’s poetry was published by Washington Irving, author of “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow.”
The Poets’ Mural will include an excerpt from Lucretia’s poem “Twilight,” which celebrates the Saranac River.
The mural’s community programming includes “Poem Village/Poem City” in cooperation with the Adirondack Center for Writing. Regional authors currently have their poetry on display at local businesses and organizations around town, and at SUNY Plattsburgh, through June 30.
CCHA and OA will offer additional activities inspired by the mural throughout the summer.
“In giving recognition and sharing the words of people from Plattsburgh’s past, we hope this mural will inspire future poets, writers, and storytellers,” Amy Guglielmo, OA co-founder, said.
“We are grateful for the amazing local support we continue to receive,” Julia Devine, OA co-founder, said.
“The art is free, but making it is not. We pay our artists, provide them with supplies and equipment, secure the walls, acquire insurance, coordinate with the owners and the municipality, raise funds, write grants, promote it to the community, produce mural celebrations, etc. There’s a lot of work that goes into producing a mural. When we first started, it may not have been clear as to how our murals stimulate the local economy, but after eight years, the impact is evident. Murals are a good investment for our community not only for the economy but for public safety, health and education too.”
This project has been partially funded with support from Assemblyman D. Billy Jones (D-Chateaugay) and Plattsburgh Noon Kiwanis Club, and the Statewide Community Regrants Program, a regrant program of the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of the Office of the Governor and the New York State Legislature and administered by the Adirondack Lakes Center for the Arts.