COMMUNITY & PEOPLE
HERE COMES
S
THE SUN
in Sanford BY NIKKI NAMDAR
anford’s very first mural has been brightening up First Street. Painted on none other than the Hotchkiss Building, which houses Jeanine Taylor Folk Art Gallery and Gallery on First, passersby look up and notice a large sun with its cheeks adorned with a yin-yang symbol and peace sign. The mural is appropriately titled, “Here Comes the Sun,” inspired by The Beatles. “This is going to be an icon of Sanford,” Artist Mark Seppala said. “The next thing we're going to do is coffee mugs with this artwork on it. People will take a little piece of Sanford home with them.” The Pepperland-colored piece is inspired by the illustrator, Heinz Edelmann, who drew the graphics for The Beatles’ “Yellow Submarine” film. Seppala is wearing a groovy face mask designed with a land of submarines and a Rolling Stones t-shirt with the famous rock ‘n roll tongue out as he relishes in memories about seeing The Beatles live three times as a kid in Boston. He was just 30 feet away from the legendary rock stars, including George Harrison, who wrote the 1969 hit song that is the namesake to the alleyway artwork.
“When I left Disney, that was my dream job. It was hard to leave, but l tell people, ‘Life is like a ruler; you only get so many inches.’ So, when John and I came to Sanford, we wanted community. That was our main goal—don't just relax. He and I are overachievers. People think we are crazy sometimes,” he said as he recalls planning ‘Art is a Drag,’ the first drag queen entertainment in Sanford history. They are proud to be integral parts of a more inclusive movement in Sanford. During this project, which took roughly three weeks, the couple found exactly what they were looking for. Although it was his vision and drawing, Seppala’s mural dedication acknowledges key figures who were all aboard in making this drawing life-size in the heart of Celery City. “Right in the middle of it, I had to go to the emergency room. I was Mural at the Hotchkiss Building
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DANIELLA HUME, MASTROPIECES PHOTOGRAPHY (FAR LEFT); COURTESY MARK SEPPALA (INSET)
A former Disney artist, Seppala and his partner, John Sullivan, came to historic downtown Sanford seeking a small-town community.
