A6
BUSINESS
Wallowa County Chieftain
Wednesday, October 20, 2021
Artist’s seasonal images brighten local shop windows
BIZZ
BUZZ
By Bill Bradshaw
ENTERPRISE — In
addition to the natural
beauty of Wallowa County,
John Michener decorates
both homes and businesses
with his artwork, and has
been doing so for the past
fi ve years.
“I’ve been an artist my
whole life,” he said. “I’ve
been doing murals since my
20s, so over 50 years now.”
Many businesses in the
county sport his works.
One of the most noticed is
El Bajío Mexican Restau-
rant at the corner of River
and North streets in Enter-
prise. Michener added to the
cuisine the restaurant serves
by painting murals both
inside and out, from West-
ern-themed features to the
agave plants on the walls
of the bar. Agave is what
tequila is made from.
Although
most
of
Michener’s work around
Enterprise is on storefronts
he’s best known for his
murals.
“I do everything from
marine world theme parks,
big 100-foot, 200-foot back-
drops of whales or dolphins
and that,” he said. “There’s
not a lot of that here. I’ve
been working at a new hotel
they’re building at the corner
(of Main and River streets),
I’ve got work inside there,
the Elks Lodge mural, and
NAPA Auto and El Bajío
and in Joseph.”
There’s also Ace Hard-
ware, Central Copy, Blue
Bill Bradshaw/Wallowa County Chieftain
A depiction of a bear wading across a stream while waterfowl
are in fl ight by John Michener of Michener Murals graces one
of the walls at the Back Country Little Store in Enterprise.
MICHENER MURALS
Who: John Michener
Phone: 541-660-0231
Email: michenermurals@gmail.com
Online: Google John Michener artist; website coming
Bill Bradshaw/Wallowa County Chieftain
John Michener, of Michener Murals, stands near a Halloween-themed window he painted at
Sugar Time Bakery in Enterprise. Michener’s work can be seen on numerous businesses around
Wallowa County.
Mountain
Computer,
Umpqua Bank, the Bank
of Eastern Oregon, Outlaw
Motor Sports and others.
One of the more interest-
ing is along the high walls
of the Back Country Little
Store in Enterprise. There,
Michener painted depictions
of a variety of wildlife in
their natural setting.
Seasonal paintings
Many of the paintings
go with the season, such as
the Halloween-themed win-
dows at Sugar Time Bakery.
“Some are waiting for
Christmas,” Michener said.
In fact, he said the sea-
sonal decorations opened
up a whole new area for his
creativity.
“I started doing that
about four years ago. I was
doing it at Christmas and it
caught on and started doing
all the diff erent seasons,” he
said. “It’s fun because when
I’m working on the diff erent
windows, people stop me
in the streets and say they
sure love the seasons and the
storefronts all painted up.”
International exposure
A Canadian by birth,
Michener has done his
artwork all over North
America.
“I’ve got murals in diff er-
ent towns all over the United
States and some in Mex-
ico and some in Canada,”
he said. “I’ve done World’s
fairs and stuff ,” including
Expo 86 in Vancouver, Brit-
ish Columbia, Canada.
His medium
Michener paints almost
exclusively with water-
based acrylic and latex.
“All the windows are
done water-based and it
comes off really easy,” he
said.
His outdoor murals are of
a high-quality latex water-
based paint with a clear coat
over them for protection
against the sun’s ultraviolet
light. He said they hold up
well.
“I have murals that are 20
or 25 years old,” he said.
Generally, the only
touching-up required is if a
mural gets damaged. They
do require a new clear coat
every fi ve years to protect
against the UV light.
“If you get a good solid
base and you don’t have
crumbling paint under it and
you put a good primer on
there and with the paint and
clear coat, it works pretty
good,” he said. “The sun
will beat down on certain
colors — like reds will fade
in the sun almost no matter
what you do. If you put a
clear coat on them, they last
a lot longer.”
Michener also does
indoor work in homes, as
well as businesses.
“I do all kinds of interior
and exterior for homes,” he
said. “I can do kids’ rooms
or bathrooms. People can
call me up and I can come
by for a consultation and
throw some ideas their way
and how they can fi x the
place up, especially since
people are stuck inside a lot
these days, it’s nice to bring
another creative element
into their house.”
Credit where it’s due
Michener appreciates the
support he gets from the Wal-
lowa County community.
“I’ve done all diff er-
ent kinds of styles over 50
years, from abstract to surre-
alism to realism and every-
thing in between,” he said.
“A lot of times, because I’ve
done diff erent jobs for dif-
& Skylight
Gallery
ferent people, I’m versatile,
which is a good thing.”
But he knows it’s the peo-
ple who fund his work who
make it possible.
“I’m really grateful for
the townspeople who throw
out $100, $75 or $200 or
whatever at this time of year
(which) is often not a good
decision … whether or not
they can aff ord to do it,”
Michener said. “So the ones
who do that, I’m really grate-
ful for it and I want them to
know that. The townspeo-
ple I run into all the time tell
me how they love how the
town gets decorated up. I
can do it, but the credit goes
to the store owners. They’re
the ones who make it pos-
sible and I really think it
does contribute to lightening
things up around here.”
———
Bill Bradshaw is a
reporter for the Wallowa
County Chieftain. Have a
business tip? Contact him
at 541-398-5503 or bbrad-
shaw@wallowa.com.
Church
Directory
Finding books is
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CLUES ACROSS
1. Luxury craft
6. Big oil grp.
10. “Just Do It” company
14. Possible reaction to
unwanted flowers
15. Temporarily bright star
16. Sign of the future
17. Fantastic ‘90s card carrier?
19. Zipped and zoomed
20. Actor Rogen
21. “High ___” (classic
Western)
22. Way off base, say?: Abbr.
23. “Como ___ usted?”
25. Draws on
26. “Hey, who’s pretending
to be rocker Liz?”?
31. Leather for some jackets
32. Toned
33. ‘Vette roof option
35. Western neighbor of Ga.
36. “Why are you still
bothering me?”
40. Sometimes-hazy
brew, briefly
41. They’re smart and funny
43. Futbol stadium cry
44. Crude abode
46. Connections at a scam
call center?
50. Ad agency award
51. Take it easy
52. Varieties
53. Told, as a yarn
55. Muddy spot
59. Child’s play, maybe?
60. Epic sigh of relief?
62. Mortgage adjustment,
for short
63. Light snack
64. Do more than apologize
65. Word a sliding runner
likes to hear
66. Kyle’s bestie on
“South Park”
67. Heavily promotes
CLUES DOWN
1. Puppy sounds
2. Tooth or ear malady
Joseph United
Methodist Church
Grace Lutheran
Church
3rd & Lake St. • Joseph
409 West Main - Enterprise
10 AM Worship
Online AND In Person
SUNDAY
WORSHIP
For More Info
541-432-3102
JosephUMC.ORG
at 9am
Pastor Cherie Dearth
Pastor John B. King Jr
phone (message): 541-426-4633
web: gracelutheranenterprise.com
Enterprise
Christian Church
St.
St. Patrick’s
Patrick’s
Episcopal
Episcopal Church
Church
85035 Joseph Hwy • (541) 426-3449
We have ‘In-person worship” @ 9:00 am
(Guidelines observed)
Sunday School at 10:30
Parking Lot Radio/Facebook @ 9:00
100 NE 3rd St, Enterprise
NE 3rd & Main St
541-426-3439
Worship Service
Sunday 9:30am
David Bruce
Pastor, Enterprise Christian Church
Lostine
Presbyterian Church
Summit Church
Discussion Group 9:30 AM
Worship Service 11:00 AM
at the Cloverleaf Hall in Enterprise
Childrens program during service
Blog: dancingforth.blogspot.com
3. Have a convo
4. Someone with a short fuse
5. AAA service
6. From another museum, perhaps
7. Water ___ (Olympic sport)
8. Divisible by two
9. One may be feral
10. “Easy peasy!”
11. “Are you sure?” response
12. Backbone of a boat
13. Word before “point,” “line”
or “zone”
18. Marching insects
22. Firepit residue
24. Meal in a Crock-Pot
25. “I’ve had it ___ here!”
26. Blooming bulb
27. Annoying feline in comics
28. Frequently
29. Altoids container
30. Lassos
31. Didn’t miss?
34. Friend
37. Hostess product similar to a Yodel
38. Famous boxer and trash-talker
39. Expert
42. Dressy neckwear
45. Nearly out of gas
47. Certain sib
48. ___-free restaurant
49. Penny, but not Abbey
52. Assemble-it-yourself
furniture brand
53. Executive’s apparel
54. Hummus scooper
56. Stack chain
57. Russo of “Thor”
58. Lambs’ mothers
59. 12th graders: Abbr.
60. NFL signal-callers
61. “That feels wonderful!”
107 E. Main • Enterprise • 541-426-3351
www.bookloftoregon.com
Sundays at 10 am
Pastor: David Pendleton
541.398.0597
Hwy 82, Lostine
www.summitchurchoregon.org
Stephen Kliewer, Minister
Cloverleaf Hall • 668 NW 1st St. • Enterprise, OR 97828
Wallowa
Assembly
of God
702 West Hwy 82
Wallowa, Oregon
541-886-8445
Sunday School • 9:am
Worship Service • 10:am
Pastor Tim Barton
Visit Us on
Christ Covenant
Church
Pastor Terry Tollefson
Church Office: 541-263-0505
Family Prayer - 9 AM
Sunday School - 9:30 AM
Worship - 10:30 AM
723 College Street, Lostine
Seventh-Day Adventist
Church & School
Enterprise Community
Congregational Church
305 Wagner (near the Cemetery)
P.O. Box N. Enterprise, OR 97828
Church 541-426-3751
School 541-426-8339
Pastor David Ballard 503-810-9886
Join us at the
BIG BROWN CHURCH
Worship Hour
10:30 a.m. - Noon
Sunday Worship 11:00 am
Bible Studies:
Sundays 9:30 am
301 NE First St. • Enterprise, OR
Find us on Facebook! 541.426.3044