Phoenix art installation at Axel’s Gallery to mark 10 years since Irene

July 17, 2020  |  By Sidney Bewlay

The illustration of a phoenix by artist Jessica Zawicki was chosen in a 2019 contest for submissions for a mural to adorn the exterior of the building alongside the alley outside Axel’s Gallery & Frame Shop. Photo by Gordon Miller.

UPDATE: A detail in this story regarding the selection process for the mural image was corrected.

As next summer marks the 10th anniversary of Tropical Storm Irene, Axel’s Gallery & Frame Shop on Stowe Street plans a new public art installment on its exterior to “commemorate Waterbury’s resilience and make our town an even more beautiful place to live.”

That’s how gallery owner Whitney Aldrich put it last week as the proposal went to the town Development Review Board for review. 

Aldrich presented plans to install a 20-foot-tall colorful image of a phoenix on the brick wall that faces the service alley adjacent to the building. The phoenix will either be painted or printed vinyl, and will be mounted to the side of the building on a piece of welded sheet metal. 

The idea for the phoenix came from the large paper phoenix lantern from the River of Light lantern parade held the December after Irene in 2011, Aldrich said. The record-breaking flood that August caused widespread damage to homes, businesses and the state offices in Waterbury village. The community’s recovery and rebuilding spanned several years afterward. 

The annual River of Light parade began the year before the storm and has been held each December since. It features handmade lanterns, some small and simple made by young school children and other elaborate creations carried by multiple adults. Many are made with paper on willow frames. 

Mame McKee and her phoenix in the River of Light Parade. Photo by Gwori Savoor.

In 2011, artists Mame McKee, M.K. Monley and their book group friends built a large phoenix lantern that McKee actually wore to walk in the River of Light Parade as a symbol of “the heartbeat of Waterbury coming back; the passion of the town in being resilient,” Aldrich recalled. 

Fast-forward to the winter of 2019. The phoenix design for the Axel’s Gallery mural was created by former Waterbury resident Jessica Zawicki based on McKee’s original design. Zawicki’s image won a “Call to Artists” contest seeking designs. After it was selected for the art installation, Zawicki gave Axel’s Gallery the rights to reproduce her image for the project.

At Wednesday’s hearing with the Waterbury Development Review Board to discuss the mural,  numerous members of the public attended to express support for the display, including Monley. 

The board overwhelmingly supported the project. However, the main concern over the art piece was how it will be attached to the building. Owned by WDEV radio station owner Ken Squier, the building is on the National Register of Historic Places. The goal is to preserve the integrity and appearance of the structure and town and state regulations govern changes to the exteriors of such buildings. 

Aldrich’s original proposal was to attach the piece to the side of the building through points in the grout between the bricks. Based upon recommendations and advice from the state Department of Historic Preservation, the metal panel with the phoenix would be hung in a way that preserves both the brick and structural integrity of the building. 

Axel’s Gallery “isn’t looking to deface this historic building, only to enhance it,” Aldrich said.

Before the board voted, Aldrich also offered a second mounting suggestion -- hanging the piece from the top of the building and anchoring it into the ground. The board was hesitant to weigh in on that notion since it had not been run past the preservation experts. 

For now, Aldrich’s request has been approved using the original installation plan on the condition that if the method of installation were to change, she would need to return to the board for additional review.

Though the art display will hang on the side of the building that faces a service alley, Aldrich said she thinks that this is a perfect spot. “The sculpture embodies everything that happens in that alley way. We’ve hung art in that alley before, had performances in it, and people tend to congregate there,” she said. 

Because the art will be on a historic building, Aldrich anticipates some residents might not like the piece or the project. However, this doesn’t worry her. Aldrich said she hopes the piece can stand as a symbol of the town and “invoke conversation of public art from all sides.” 

Waterbury resident Laura Parette attended the hearing in support of the project. She said she thinks the timing of this mural is perfect. Waterbury will not only be celebrating the 10th anniversary of Irene next summer, but will also be coming out of the large-scale reconstruction of Main Street, and as Parrette added, hopefully the worst of the COVID-19 pandemic.

“It will be a really nice awakening for the community as well as an addition in terms of public art,” Parette said. 

Community News Service is a collaboration with the University of Vermont’s Reporting & Documentary Storytelling program.