Painting the town
Christopher Galiyas works under the hot sun Wednesday to add color to the mural he's free-handing on the side of Kaleidoscope II in downtown Washington. Galiyas, of Belle Vernon, was commissioned by the shop owner.
Belle Vernon artist Christopher Galiyas brings a leaf to life on a mural he's creating on the side of Kaleidoscope II in downtown Washington.
Artist Christopher Galiyas has been hard at work spray painting a larger-than-life mural on the side of Kaleidoscope II in Washington, Pa. The mural incorporates the shop's mission, "the art of recovery," with butterflies - which symbolize rebirth - and flowers, which grow and bloom.
For days, folks have honked, thrown thumbs up and shouted appreciatively from car windows at artist Christopher Galiyas, who is adding color to downtown Washington with a mural he's spray painting onto Kaleidoscope II. The mural is about ten days' work for Galiyas.
Christopher Galiyas, a Belle Vernon artist, is working to complete a mural on the side of Kaleidoscope II in Washington that symbolically illustrates the shop's mission to promote growth and encouragement.
Christopher Galiyas worked with the shop owner of Kaleidoscope II to design a mural that represents the shop's mission, "art of recovery," through bright colors and symbolism. The mural showcases butterflies, which represent rebirth, flowers, which grow and bloom where planted, and empowering Picasso-esque women.
The mural Christopher Galiyas is working on in downtown Washington is, he estimates, about 40 by 28 feet (his ladder is 28 feet). Galiyas free-hands the artwork and uses spray paint to bring his vision to life.
The mural taking shape on the side of Kaleidoscope II in Washington, Pa., is about ten days' work for local artist Christopher Galiyas, who starts spray painting, free hand, early in the morning. Galiyas said it's been fun interacting with locals while he works.
Morning commuters, midday walkers and casual passerby have for days been treated to a colorful sight along East Walnut Street in Washington, Pa. Local artist Christopher Galiyas has set up shop at Kaleidoscope II, where he climbs ladders and free-hands what is quickly becoming a larger-than-life mural that draws inspiration from the shop’s mission to facilitate self discovery, growth and encouragement. “Why not do a mural of rebirth and transformation?” Galiyas said, alluding to Kaleidoscope II’s art therapy for women who have been through difficult times. Galiyas, of Belle Vernon, got his start in mural painting in the mid-90s, when he worked for a house painting company. “A lady asked if we could do a dinosaur mural in her kid’s bedroom,” he recalled. “Once I did one, the neighbor got one. It just kind of snowballed.” When he isn’t teaching art to kindergarten through third at West Mifflin, Galiyas delights in decorating buildings with his spray painted imaginings (he also takes custom painting commissions). The project at Kaleidoscope II is expected to take him about ten days. “It’s just fun,” Galiyas said, adding he starts painting early to beat the sweltering July heat and has enjoyed interacting with the curious public. “Murals become landmarks.”