Eugene weekly., November 02, 2017, Page 13, Image 13

Best artist
1. Ila Rose facebook.com/ilaroseart
2. Shanna Trumbly trumblydesigns.com.
3. Max Von Kaspar
Best Mural
1. Woman with Snakes, Ila Rose Elevation Builder
Gym at 348 W. 3rd Ave.
2. Tiger and Dragon, Hua Tunan Vistra Framing and
Gallery, 411 W. 4th St.
3. Bee of Wildcraft, Steven Lopez WildCraft Cider
Works, 254 Lincoln St.
Her newest creation of art, a show-stopping piece
covering the walls of another building in Eugene, has
clearly captured the attention of many, as Ila Rose — a
Eugene native and lifelong painter — is not only the
winner of this year’s Best Mural, but is crowned Best
Artist as well.
“There was never a starting point for art for me, it’s
just always been what I do,” Rose says.
The winning mural dignifies the north and east walls
of the Elevation Builder Gym at 348 W. 3rd Avenue and
features a two-faced head of a woman with snakes in
her hair. The mural is centered on the corner connecting
both walls, and the geometric patterns in the green and
yellow backdrop create a perfect contrast to focus in on
the detail of the woman looking out onto the two. At the
second glance, you see a young girl reaching out to greet
the woman.
“Essentially, it’s about how children face obstacles
with more of an openness and curiosity than adults,”
Rose says. “This child is facing what an adult might
see as a beast, but the child is looking and examining
differently, pondering what lessons can be learned rather
than seeing it as something scary to avoid.”
Rose’s mural is part of the 20x21Eug Mural Project,
a city initiative to create 20 or more world-class outdoor
murals in Eugene between now and the 2021 IAAF
World Championships. She reached out to the project
committee about their inclusion of local artists in the
project; they gave her a wall and she came up with the
design in only a week.
“Murals are an awesome way to make a public
statement and engage with the world around us,” Rose
says. “I wanted to paint one as a way to engage with my
local community and just connect with the people in
Eugene.”
Rose says this mural was in part a response to her first
public mural that paints another wall in Eugene, at 5th
Alley and Blair Boulevard, that she did as a commission
for the Whiteaker Community Art Team a few years
back. “Imagery in this mural was born from shifting
around images and thoughts from my other mural,” she
says.
The project brought in artists from around the world,
and Rose says at times she felt she had less technical
skill than some. But, she says, the support she received
as a member of the community kept her going. “There
is so much support for local artists in Eugene, and that
really helped me feel like I could be successful,” Rose
explains. “I’ve always had my whole town behind me,
and that is really cool.”
What’s in Rose’s future? “Finding something with a
salary,” she laughs. She is considering going to graduate
school and getting a degree to teach art in an educational
setting. “Whatever I do, I’ll always be creating art.”
The remarkable second-place mural — an intricate,
deep-red wall featuring a battle between tigers and a
black dragon — was created by Chinese artist Hua
Tunan. The mural is powerful, displaying the result of
a focused combination of traditional Chinese art and the
act of graffiti. The action-filled, detailed creation can be
found on the west wall of Vistra Framing and Gallery, at
411 W. 4th Street.
Steven Lopez, the artist behind the third-place
mural, works and lives in Los Angeles but graduated
with a degree in fine arts from the University of Oregon.
His mural is vibrant in color and grand in character
— a dynamic bee stands out among a geometric
honeycomb, creating an extravagant scene with a subtle
environmental message about the importance of wildlife
in our world. The bright, elaborate mural can be seen on
west side of WildCraft Cider Works’ warehouse at 254
Lincoln Street. — Morgan Theophil
PHOTo: Athena Delene
e u g e n e w e e k l y . c o m • N o v e m b e r 2 , 2 017
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