‘BOLD,

New murals at New Spire Stages spark inspiration in Frederick

BY DORVALL BEDFORD Special to The News-Post

Laura Hawk, manager of operations for the Weinberg Center for the Arts, remembers walking through the glass doors of New Spire Stages frequently last December and watching two new murals slowly come to life.

Hawk didn’t often see muralist Leila Eguino when she arrived, since the artist did most of the painting at night, but for a period of about three weeks, she got to see blank white walls gradually filled in with black paint.

Whenever Hawk did see Eguino at work, the artist would be balancing on a tall, orange ladder that she was at first nervous to be on.

“It was very cool to see the progression of the mural as it developed,” Hawk said. “I was able to see where all the work came from and what it was leading towards.”

Commissioned by the Frederick Arts Council and funded by the Ausherman Family Foundation, two black-andwhite murals now reside inside New Spire Stages and are visible from outside the building. One depicts three jazz musicians, while the other portrays James Baldwin beside a quote of his about the purpose of artists. “The role of the artist is exactly the same as the role of the lover,” the quote says. “If I love you, I have to make you conscious of the things you don’t see.”

Ausherman Family Foundation executive director Leigh Adams described the murals as a creative statement meant to elevate Frederick’s theater district, and the space they occupy is very fitting.

“It’s a bold, beautiful celebration of performing arts,” Adams said.

The two murals came about through to the FAC and its Public Art Master Plan, which was announced in 2019 and sponsored by the Ausherman Family Foundation. According to Adams, the plan connects local