Community mural marks Kiwanis Club’s 100th year in Mankato

A mural is taking shape on what was previously a nondescript concrete barrier near Riverfront Park, thanks to a collaboration between the Kiwanis Club, local artists and children.

The Kiwanis Club is gifting the “centennial mural” to the community to mark the service organization’s 100th year in Mankato. Mankato Iron and Metal offered up the barrier, located on Rock Street down the street from the park, as a canvas.

While overseeing children paint sections Thursday, muralist Justin Ek of Bellissimo Paint and Coatings said community involvement is a key component of the project.

“This is kind of how I started doing my art stuff; somebody gave me a chance to do this,” he said. “So I hope that passes on to somebody who came to one of these things.”

Children of Kiwanis members helped out, along with children from MY Place. Ek brought various items ranging from squirt guns to bath toys for the children to paint with, each one putting their own spin on the lower part of the mural.

More children from YWCA Mankato’s New American Families program and children of Dotson Iron Castings workers — located across the street from the mural — will work on other sections Friday. Dotson Iron Castings supported the project with donations, along with individual donors and a grant from the city of Mankato.

Kiwanis President Laura Stevens credited President-Elect Mike Lagerquist for coming up with the mural project. The idea was to give back to the community while involving children in a project.

“Everyone walks by here to go to the park, and what a cool way to increase the look of it,” Stevens said Thursday.

Twin Rivers Council for the Arts organized youth participation on the project. It’s also helping raise money to fund it, with about half of the $23,000 estimated cost already raised.

By beautifying the corridor leading to Riverfront Park, the project benefits both businesses and the public, said Mat Greiner, executive director at Twin Rivers.

“Where community and art are coming together to improve things for the greater metro area in a strategic way, that’s what I think we would like to see happen with more projects,” he said.

The mural’s design mixes youthful creativity with sections designed by Ek and his team at Bellissimo, based in Old Town Mankato. A bison is prominently featured at the start of the mural from where people will approach it heading to the park.

Organizers worked with the Blue Earth County Historical Society on ideas, Stevens said. And on a personal level, Ek said his Indigenous roots are represented in the design.

“I think the bison is a strong symbol of that, the spiritual significance of the Indigenous people here and my own Indigenous background,” he said.

More bison will be on upcoming mural sections. Ek also mentioned a train will be included as a nod to the nearby tracks. He called the project a way to make the community more attractive to visitors, introduce diverse groups to art, and acknowledge the Kiwanis Club’s 100 years in Mankato.

“It can help our economy, it can help visitation, it can help representation and providing opportunities for different, diverse groups of people,” he said. “It’s also a creative outlet giving them a place to create while highlighting Kiwanis’ contribution to the community.”