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American flags are one of Audrey Sayles’ favorite things to paint. She made sure there are exactly 50 stars on this mural. — Darci Rodriguez | The Holyoke Enterprise

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Kathy and Carl Schneller’s grain bin mural, painted by Audrey Sayles of Some Girls and a Mural earlier this month, encapsulates everything that is important to them — the Schneller family, their farming business, their Christian faith and their American pride. — Courtesy photo

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It’s a good thing that Audrey Sayles is not afraid of heights as she works on this 30-foot grain bin mural earlier this month. — Darci Rodriguez | The Holyoke Enterprise

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Audrey Sayles of Some Girls and a Mural braves the hot sun to paint on Carl and Kathy Schneller’s grain bin east of Holyoke. — Darci Rodriguez | The Holyoke Enterprise

Freedom Family Faith Farming

For Carl and Kathy Schneller, they couldn’t think of a better way to share their pride in agriculture and their country than to paint a 30-foot mural on one of their grain bins. The “bin bling,” which features a waving American flag, giant corn stalks, the name of their farming business and the Christian fish symbol, can be seen at their home on the south side of Highway 6 about a mile east of Holyoke.

To get the job done, they enlisted the help of muralist Audrey Sayles. She started Some Girls and a Mural with her cousin Staci Beauford after painting their first mural, “Heart of Harvest,” a 60-foot monumental undertaking, on a grain bin in Limon in 2018.

“We thought we went viral,” said Sayles, noting that their first project got a lot of buzz on social media. It proved the need for art in rural communities, and what the two women thought would be just a summer gig became something much bigger.

“We fell into it,” said Sayles, who is a self-taught artist. She’ll turn 34 this weekend.

Some Girls and a Mural is mostly based in Limon, but Sayles said they’ll travel just about anywhere to paint a mural.

The Schnellers’ grain bin is Sayles’ first project in Holyoke. “We knew from the first call we had that this was going to be a special client!” she said on a Facebook post. “We are forever grateful and humbled to get to be a part of your lives. You’re the kind of people you meet for the first time with a hug. Our kind of people.”

Sayles and Kathy worked on the design together. “Our heart is in ag,” said Kathy. “We love American flags, we love God, and we love our country.”

Sayles painted the mural during some especially hot weather in June, but she didn’t mind it too much since she’s just as passionate about ag and flags as the Schnellers.

She used a photo of the bin to lay out the design, and once she was up on the lift, she could use the grooves as a guide. The muralist utilized a projector to trace the design on the bin, but most of it was freehand.

Sayles uses paint brushes and exterior latex paint, just like someone would use on their house.

“The success of a mural is definitely in the prep work,” she said. Whatever the project is, she makes sure it’s washed properly, and she’ll even contact the company where the material was manufactured to make sure that the paint will work well on it.

It’s an investment for a company or a family, she said, so she wants to do everything she can to make sure it lasts for years.

It was fun for the Schnellers to watch the progress of the mural over just a few days, and even their employees got glimpses of it as they drove past the grain bins. “I’m proud of our business,” said Kathy.

In addition to bins, Some Girls and a Mural has painted a wide range of locations: grain elevator, wind turbine blade, storage container, buildings, storefronts, garage doors and interior walls.

There’s a “joy factor” when people see art, said Sayles, noting that people don’t always realize the benefit of art. “Big kudos” to the Schnellers for bringing some to rural Holyoke, she said.

Art can also bring more people to small communities and bridge a gap between urban and rural populations. Sayles is from Siebert, a small town in Kit Carson County on Interstate 70. She asked, what if art was the reason more people stopped in Siebert? What would that do for the town?

For more information about Some Girls and a Mural, visit www.somegirlsandamural.com or check out the company on Facebook.

 

Holyoke Enterprise

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