Seward: Mural Capital of Alaska

Sunday, 22 August: Part III

I first got the idea of searching for the murals that are scattered about town from a blog that I follow. Intrigued, I did a bit of research and learned from the Mural Society website that:

The beautiful seaside town of Seward was officially designated, “Mural Capital of Alaska” in 2008 at the completion of the town’s 12th colorful mural. This achievement resulted from the enthusiasm and energy of a group of local artists and art lovers who began volunteering their talents in 1999 to paint the town!

At first, I didn’t think I’d have time to squeeze in a mural-hunt during the few short days we’d be in Seward. That changed when we made the drive down from Anchorage in record time and ended up with a spare afternoon.

Armed with the map I had downloaded from the Society’s website, as well as a list of the completed murals, we went on a scavenger hunt around Seward. Our reward: we found all but one of the murals on the list. The one we missed — the Wyland mural that is supposed to be inside the Railroad Building. No one there seemed to know anything about it. Bummer! (But hey, I found a few of the “independent” murals also listed on the website. That has to count, right?)

Painting With Wyland —2005
With no prior design, Wyland challenged the Seward Mural Society to
a 3 hour, impromptu, outdoor creativity event. Together they designed
and painted this festive mural of Resurrection Bay.

Don’t worry, I’m not going to post pictures of all of the murals we found, just a select few that carry meaning for us … one because we rode it from Anchorage to Fairbanks, and again from Anchorage to Seward; one because we visited the kennels of a many-time champion; one because we saw so many of them in Kodiak; and one because we hope to climb up to it tomorrow. What about the last one? Well that one made the list because it was different from all of the others.

Seward — Gateway to Alaska — 2005
the mural celebrates the Alaska Railroad, and Seward as the Railroad’s
southern terminus.

Detail from Seward — gateway to Alaska.

The Iditarod Trail — 2002
In the winter of 1908, a gold strike on Otter Creek, a tributary of
the Iditarod river, prompted the Alaska road commission to construct a
trail from Seward to the Iditarod mining district and then on to Nome.
in 1910-11, nearly 1,000 miles of trail were surveyed, marked, and cleared.
the Iditarod, originally called the Seward to Nome mail trail, was a winter
trail, and dog teams and sleds were the most popular mode of travel. people,
gold, mail, and freight flowed up and down the trail until the 1920s when
mining declined and the airplane began to replace the dog teams. the
annual Iditarod trail sled dog race follows the old trail for the most part
and commemorates the important role sled dogs played in the opening of
the frontier in alaska.

Detail from the Iditarod Trail mural.

Tribute to commercial Fishing — 2003
Commercial fishing has played a big part in Seward’s history and economy.
As a port centrally located on the rich waters of the gulf of Alaska, Seward
is a top port of delivery for halibut, cod, herring, and salmon. Though
not highly visible to the general public, this is a reminder of the men and
women who work these waters and their contribution to our community.

Detail from the Tribute to Commercial Fishing.

Remembering Exit Glacier — 2007
the mural pays tribute to Seward’s own Exit Glacier. Here the artist has
captured the glacier in its prime lest we forget its grandeur as it
slowly marches in recession up the valley.

Detail from Remembering Exit Glacier.

Mount Marathon Climbing Wall — 2008
designed as part of Seward’s PARKS playground project, the mural
commemorates the annual mount marathon race, The halfway Point of which
is a stone marker atop the mountain, 3,022 feet (921 m) above sea level.

The colorful murals brightened up an otherwise drizzly, overcast afternoon in Seward. I’m really glad that we had time to spare for this scavenger hunt.