Murals across the Lehigh Valley
Murals have become more prominent on Lehigh Valley downtown buildings and parking garages, according to Lehigh Valley Public Media. The outlet reports that officials and arts advocates see public art as a way to make downtown areas more inviting and encourage exploration, while noting that its broader effects are difficult to measure. Such projects can involve artists, businesses, property owners, community groups and local government, the station reports.
Bethlehem has used community input on earlier garage art. Residents discussed what they wanted the Polk Street Garage mural to celebrate, and artists Matt Halm and Jermel Fountain later created a South Side tribute informed by conversations with residents, according to the same Lehigh Valley Public Media report.
A new mural at Walnut Street Garage
The mural’s design sets three oversized yellow, red and blue birds against black-and-white depictions of the Hill-to-Hill Bridge and Moravian Church. Bethlehem officials unveiled the work inside Walnut Street Garage, and local artist Hector Castro said the bridge represents a connection between the city’s north and south sides; he included the church because it is among Bethlehem’s oldest structures, according to WFMZ.
Castro said the contrast keeps the buildings uncolored while letting the birds carry the mural’s color. He associated the birds with freedom and connected that idea to everyday concerns including health, finances and stress. He also described the work as an invitation to embrace life’s possibilities and work together, WFMZ reported.
Garage improvements and Castro’s other projects
The Walnut Street project is the third garage to receive artwork through the parking authority’s initiative, with more improvements planned, WFMZ reported. Authority chairman Mark Jobes said the agency aims to make its garages more welcoming and is considering colored exterior lighting for monthly observances, including pink lights for breast cancer awareness in October. The garages already have interior lighting. Tammy Wendling, senior vice president of Bethlehem initiatives for the Greater Lehigh Valley Chamber of Commerce, said the murals can introduce visitors to the city and give them a memorable impression, according to WFMZ.
Parking and transit connections
The Walnut Street Garage adds 517 parking spots and 3,000 square feet of retail space, according to WFMZ’s report when the garage opened. For people parking in its garages or lots, the Bethlehem Parking Authority recommends parking once and using LANta’s EBS Rapid Transit.
Castro’s regional work includes the Grow in Peace mural at La Placita in Allentown’s First Ward, unveiled in June 2023 with support from the Allentown Mural Arts Commission and sponsorship from AARP Pennsylvania. Castro said the mural was intended to represent peace, hope and healthy aging. The wall measured 90 feet by 40 feet at its peak, and the project took about two months, according to lehighvalleylive.com.
Castro also worked with muralist Matt Halm on a charging-bison mural at 9th and Hamilton streets in downtown Allentown. Commissioned by City Center Allentown, it covers the walls of seven floors of the Cityplace apartment building and joined more than a dozen large murals already in the city, according to lehighvalleynews.com.
