Arts Commission Extends Public Feedback on Joliet’s Murals until April 21, 2021

The City of Joliet Arts Incubation subcommittee continues to seek the public’s feedback and commentary concerning murals that currently exist in Joliet, their subject matter and current condition until Wednesday, April 21, 2021.

The next Arts Incubation subcommittee meetings are tentatively scheduled to take place on Thursday, April 8, 2021 at 4:30 p.m. and Wednesday, April 21, 2021 at 4 p.m., in the Council Chambers of Joliet City Hall, 150 W. Jefferson St. 60432. Both of the above meeting dates are tentative pending final agendas and meeting advertisement.  Meeting dates, times and agendas can be found at: https://joliet.legistar.com/Calendar.aspx

The public can participate in the meeting the following ways:

• Attend one of the above scheduled meetings and speak under Public Comment or Citizens to Be Heard on Agenda Items. The agenda item the public should reference concerning murals is as follows: Discussion of Established Murals. The format for in-person public commentary can be found on the Meeting Schedule & Procedure webpage.
• Submit a public comment via the online form submission found at: https://www.joliet.gov/government/boards-commissions/arts-commission. The form will remain open until 3 p.m. on Wednesday, April 21, 2021.

The Arts Incubation subcommittee is currently tasked with assessing the condition of the existing murals, how to manage art in its current state and eventually recommending a public art management policy for the City of Joliet.

For the public’s convenience, a list of established mural locations can be found in the publication “The Great Walls of Joliet” by Jeff Huebner, 2001 pp. 128-129 as well as below.

1. The Foundation of Every State is the Education of Its Youth: Joliet Township High School Centennial; Three murals, north wall of E. Jefferson Street between Eastern Avenue and Richards Street.
2. La Herencia Mexicana: Mexican Heritage; south wall at 617 Collins Street at Liberty Street
3. Ancient Traditions, A New Frontier: An Italian Heritage; north wall of 121 N. Chicago Street at Clinton Street
4. German Heritage I & II; south side and north side of Columbia Street
5. German Heritage I & II; south side and north side of Columbia Street
6. United We Stand: Irish Heritage; north wall of 121 N. Chicago Street at Clinton Street
7. From the Hands of Ceres: Ode to Will County Farmers; east side of the 500 block of Scott Street
8. E J & E Railroad & Its Mexican Workers; west side of the 600 block of Scott Street
9. Gompers’ Brotherhood; east wall of Gompers Junior High School, 1301 Copperfield Avenue
10. Visions From a Dream: An African American Neighborhood; north wall of Eliza Kelly Grade School, 100 W. McDonough Street
11. Channahon Lock; north side of W. Jefferson Street at Bluff Street
12. The Des Plaines River; west side of Bluff Street near W. Jefferson Street
13. Cargo Boat; north of the Des Plaines River mural on the west side of Bluff Street
14. Joliet Limestone: Our Canals & Quarries; east retaining wall of the Des Plaines River at Washington Street
15. Selling Sentiment: Gerlach-Barklow; northeast corner of E. Washington Street at Richards Street
16. Joliet: A City of Steel; north east corner of Michigan Street at E. Washington Street
17. Joliet’s History, Our History: African-Americans; northeast corner of E. Washington Street at Eastern Avenue
18. Sauk Trail; New Street at the pedestrian crossing for Union Station
19. Hickory Creek in the 1830s; New Street at the pedestrian crossing for Union Station
20. Joliet’s Love ofMusic: northwest corner of Michigan Street at Van Buren Street
21. La Katerina: Katherine Dunham; southwest corner of Michigan Street at Clinton Street
22. Papering the World: Joliet’s Wallpaper Industry; northwest corner of Michigan Stree at Cass Street
23. Bluff Street Architecture in 1840: south side of W. Jefferson at Bluff Street
24. A Patchwork of Hearth & Home: Women & Children of Bluff Street; under the Broadway Street overpass on the south side of W. Jefferson Street
25. Bustling Bluff Street in the 1800s; south side of W. Jefferson Street between Broadway Street and Hickory Street
26. From Slovenia to America; east side of Scott Street at Ohio Street
27. Joliet Steam Train; east side of E. Washington Street between Chicago Street and Scott Street
28. Visions of Joliet; interior of Union Train Station, Scott Street at E. Jefferson Street.