Mural Fest has transformed South Salt Lake into Utah’s largest open-air gallery. In May, the city celebrated its eighth festival with 13 new murals added to the Creative Industries Zone, painted by local, national and international artists. 

Organizers sifted through hundreds of artist applications before selecting this year’s muralists. Peggy Flavin, Michael Murdock, Gomad, Osiris Rain, Angie Jerez, RISK, Wingchow, Fabián Rey, Sandra Fettingis, TOOFLY, Mantra and Connor Weight each added their artistic flair to the city’s landscape.

Texas-based muralist Daas was invited back to this year’s festival after he painted the south side of SSL’s City Hall last year. He was asked to paint the north- and west-facing walls to finish the project at 220 E. Morris Avenue, where City Hall is visible from I-80. 

“It feels wonderful to be invited back. It’s a big honor,” Daas said. “It’s a city hall building, so there’s a lot of responsibility that comes with that. To be chosen for my style of artwork and to do that on such an important building is pretty awesome…Now it’s this big beacon that shows how much they’re dedicated to the arts in South Salt Lake. There’s a lot of skin in the game when you paint City Hall.”

Osiris Rain and Gomad created complementary panels on the Bowers Residences parking garage (55 W. Utopia Avenue). Rain is based in Charlotte, North Carolina, and applied for several years before getting the nod for this year’s event. He trained at the Angel Academy of Art in Florence, Italy, honing his skills under master artists. 

He and Gomad have waited several years to collaborate, so when the opportunity to paint at this year’s Mural Fest came up, they jumped at the chance.

“These are the Bowers Residences, so we played on the bowerbird,” Rain said. “The male makes this intricate nest…and the idea was to play along with this courtship. Gomad designed the female figure, I designed a male figure and they’re sort of dancing back and forth. We want to keep it loose. Not overly literal. More poetic.”

Mantra is a French street artist, inspired by nature, especially butterflies. His mural on the south side of One Burton Apartments (2400 S. Main Street) depicts a collection of seven butterflies that can be found in the area.

“I hope it can reflect, not just the diversity of the richness, but this ecosystem you have here, specific to Utah,” he said. “I hope it can speak to people from 7 to 77.”

Lesly Allen has served as the SSL Arts Council Executive Arts Director and is co-founder of SSL’s Mural Fest. While she is no longer in charge of the event, she still helps select and manage the artists. She said the goal of the festival is to create 100 murals in 10 years and organizers are right on target to hit that goal. 

The festival is intended to revitalize neighborhoods, encourage creative placemaking, bring pride to the community and enhance public spaces. Event attendees followed the Mural Fest map to find the new paintings and visit with artists. Food trucks, live music and vendor booths were located at West Temple and Bower Street. For more information, visit themuralfest.com. 

“It’s been amazing to see how South Salt Lake, the mayor, the city council and the community just really support it,” Allen said. “It’s been fun seeing it grow every year, with the number of artists who want to participate and the businesses that let us paint their walls. They’re so trusting. It’s fun to drive through the city and see all the different murals and the variety of talent and so many different artists from all over the world.” λ