587 - Linda Roesch - Mandan Meadowlark

Linda Roesch is a muralist and teaching artist with a Bachelor’s of Fine Art from Northern State University. A freelance artist since 2005, she creates public murals across the region and serves as an Artist in Residence through The Arts Center in Jamestown. Her Mandan Meadowlark mural honors North Dakota symbols and has become a cherished piece in the Mandan Art Alley.

A Western Meadowlark is perched firmly on a tree stump at the center of my mural in the Mandan Art Alley. Framed inside a bold red border shaped like the edge of a postage stamp, its yellow breast flows against patterned brown feathers. Below, pink blossoms and green leaves, referencing North Dakota’s state flower the prairie rose, anchor the composition. Behind the bird, a warm orange and yellow sun rests in a pale blue sky that fades into the purples and soft pinks of dusk.

The design was inspired, of course, by those two main characters, North Dakota’s state bird and state flower, along with imagery from an older state postage stamp that I reconfigured into my own composition. It represents symbols and history that are recognizable across the state.

I created the mural using the Poly Tab method, painting it on a primed fabric in my home studio before installing it in Mandan. After it was mounted, I blended the seams and completed touch-ups. This method allows most of the painting to happen off-site and is often more durable than painting directly onto brick.

I used acrylic paint for the detailed areas and spray paint to build texture. Many of the subtle patterns, circles and stitching-like marks, were created with stencils made from household items. Those layers give the surface added dimension. The hot pink highlights, added toward the end, are one of my favorite elements.

Working within a narrow vertical space required adjusting the design, and a portion of the tree trunk was trimmed slightly to fit. We also worked around a pipe in front of the wall during installation.

My artwork can be found across the region, from the streets of Watford City to downtown Jamestown. You can also follow along with my creative adventures and behind-the-scenes explorations at sketchingspot.com.