arts 28 MONTEREY COUNTY WEEKLY july 18-24, 2024 www.montereycountynow.com There’s a new mural in Seaside. It decorates the Open Ground Studios’ building, bringing more color and interest to passing drivers and pedestrians along Fremont Boulevard. The mural is by two Open Ground artists—Paul Richmond and Brenda Scettrini-Saglio—and is just one of 13 the duo recently finished in various locations around Monterey County in a campaign they call Community Colors. The Fremont mural, “Unity In Diversity,” was in plans for the last 11 years, since OGS opened, says artist Denese Sanders, who is also the studio space’s founder. “I’ve always wanted a mural on the building,” she says. “Recently we received a grant through the City of Seaside to improve our facade. They covered 75 percent of our cost. We were able to paint the whole building in gorgeous gold and do the mural.” The OGS mural shows two figures. The smaller one is of an artist holding a paintbrush. The larger represents the spirit of a collective, the collaboration and diversity of Seaside artists. As murals tend to do, many elements come to play, both sharp and soft lines, parts that give a neo-cubism impression and collage elements. In a whole, the mural attempts to express the many styles of many artists. “It’s a giant version of what I wanted to put on the canvas,” explains Richmond, who designed the mural. “It’s a really important mural,” adds Scettrini-Saglio, who in the past has done stained glass art, painting, printmaking and more. “It’s bringing art to everyone.” Scettrini-Saglio shares a story of a homeless woman she sees walking by OGS every day. The woman often talks to herself, angrily. “One day she stopped and she looked at the mural and her mind quieted,” Scettrini-Saglio says. “She was taking the mural in. I asked her if she wanted a popsicle and she said no and just stared at the colorful wall.” Richmond and Scettrini-Saglio met at OGS, after Richmond moved to the area and joined the collective in 2016. It’s now his main workspace, where he enjoys talking and exchanging ideas with 16 other artists, who have their studios in this surprisingly spacious building. “We just really clicked,” Richmond says about his partner. “We’ve done a lot of murals together.” “They dance well together,” Sanders says, adding that other OGS artists helped to paint the mural, as well as the high schoolers of Youth Arts Collective. Sanders participated, too. As Community Colors, the pair have been painting murals all over the county almost nonstop. Just last month, they completed three murals and have a few upcoming projects. Some of their projects adorn a CSU Monterey Bay building, a wall of Mee Memorial Hospital in King City and a large studio inside the Palenke Arts Teen Center in Seaside. There are two on Main Street in Salinas. Upcoming mural locations include Soledad, a school in Bradley and another King City project, for the Western Growers Association. “People associate art with an elite mentality and pristine museums,” Richmond says, noting the importance of public art. “Hopefully our work will inspire other artists to try murals.” The OGS mural is done with an urban style and many people, including skateboarding kids, stop to look at it and talk about it. “It’s an homage to the diversity of Seaside,” Richmond says. “We are so glad to be here.” Wall to Wall Two Open Ground Studios artists have been covering the county with colorful murals. By Agata Pop˛eda “People associate art with pristine museums.” Murals by Community Colors. Above: This brand-new mural, titled “Unity In Diversity,” is a game-changer for Fremont Boulevard in Seaside, putting Open Ground Studios on the map. Below left: Artists Paul Richmond and Brenda Scettrini-Saglio at Mamichelas restaurant in Salinas. Below right: Mee Memorial Hospital in King City. Agata Popeda Courtesy of Paul Richmond Courtesy of Paul Richmond
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