A mural gracing the side of the Tulley Building in the Village of Bergen is fulfilling the expectations of Mayor Anna Marie Barclay.
“The goal was to create a conversation as people walk by,” she says, and the artwork – which depicts the Lake St. (Rt. 19) downtown historic district as well as the Bergen Swamp and the early clearing of the community from the “Northwoods” by settlers from Connecticut – is doing just that.
“I watch people walk by, parents with children – both small and grown – who look at the mural and see little things that kick a memory. People stand there and chat,” Mayor Barclay observes.
The mural is located on the Buffalo St. side of the Tulley Building which houses the village offices. The new historical mural was completed in the summer of 2014 and dedicated just this past July. It replaces a former historical mural in the same location which was 20 years old and had begun to fade and chip.
“The brick is Bergen brick and is very porous,” Barclay says. The original mural had not been treated to protect the image and an attempt to have it restored did not work out.
Through family connections, Mayor Barclay found Robert “Chip” Miller of Elbridge, NY, an artist and art teacher who has painted murals extensively in central New York as well as in communities along the Erie Canal.
Miller got to work before painting began to get a feel for the community by “talking to residents and the village historian, to hear their stories and learn what Bergen is about,” Barclay says.
The “fool the eye” door on one end of the mural is just one of the many details and historical references included in a new mural in the village of Bergen. K. Gabalski photos
The brick wall is actually incorporated into the design of the new mural.
Barclay says each brick was painted and grouted before the image was begun, giving the mural a unique charm and making it a part of the wall. “You’re looking into a pretty incredible project,” she says.
The mural is painted with a trompe d’oeil (“fool the eye”) look, pulling the viewer in as if he or she is standing on the street and looking back in time at the downtown of the 1800s. Included is a false doorway for Mayor W. Monroe Sage, who held the position in 1877 when the village was incorporated.
“It enhances the work we have done for several years on this building to renovate it,” Mayor Barclay says. The Tulley Building houses village offices on the main floor as well as four apartments upstairs.
The mural project was funded by a grant from GO ART! (Genesee-Orleans Regional Arts Council) and donations from Bergen businesses, organizations and residents.
Barclay says Miller will visit periodically to check on the mural and to complete any necessary maintenance work.
“He considers it another one of his babies,” she says.
