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The 2024 Alternating Currents Mural Fest sparked a new wave of transformation in downtown Davenport along 3rd Street, building on the momentum from last year's event with even more vibrant artwork and community-driven enhancements.
The Mural Fest was an activation that the community embraced as five artists completed the second mural project done during the weekend of Alternating Currents.
This Mural Fest was made possible through the funding support of:
Alternating Currents Presenting Sponsors: Regional Development Authority and Rhythm City Casino and Arts Partner: TBK Bank.
Shayla Ray Afflerbaugh's Bio:
For over 18 years I've created acrylic paintings, watercolor, and digital art. I attended the Art Institute of Colorado where I studied graphic design. This is where I started to focus on digital design and illustration. I moved to the Quad Cities 12 years ago.
I have always been inspired by the beauty of nature. I love to research hidden meanings and folklore associated with the animals I paint. Music also influences my art. Ideas start popping into my head when I hear songs and lyrics that I want to bring to life through paint and design.
Connect with Shayla:
I designed this mural with nature and music in mind, featuring a bright sunset sky, trees and the river in the background. The gramophone is playing music while harmonizing with the birds and scenery.
Tony Cavallo's Bio:
Tony Cavallo was born on May 18, 1984, in Iowa. His artistic journey began in third grade when his teacher introduced the class to a book of great artists. As Tony saw works by Degas, Van Gogh, and Rembrandt, he was intrigued. But it was Hieronymus Bosch's "Garden of Earthly Delights" that truly captivated him. He asked, "Do you mean to tell me that you can spend your life painting the wildest things you can imagine?" Realizing he couldn't begin to call himself an artist without seeing the masters work, he travelled to LA and New York to see the greats with his own eyes. Struck by the sfumato "smoke" techniques of Da Vinci, the realism and perspective of M.C. Escher and the horrific beasts of Hieronymus Bosch, Cavallo is developing his own vision of artistic mastery.
Connect with Tony:
Instagram: abstractioncontraption
A big detailed smiling face with neon lasers shooting out of the eyes illustrates the excitement of witnessing a reanimated downtown.
Erykah Danner's Bio:
Erykah is a mural painter and tattoo artist living in the Midwest. Her time growing up seaside on the east coast and living the south has lead to her style of bold color and nature themes. She earned her BFA in painting and art history with an special interest in garden design. Much like gardens, she sees murals as an opportunity to use the vibrancy of bright colors and themes of the natural world to transform the energy of gray urban spaces. Creating a world of color and fun, she hopes to harness the magic of nature to create community connection in shared spaces.
Connect with Erica:
I spend 9 months of the year waiting for the 3 months summer and so does my best friend - my dog Millie. Summer adventures mean as much to her as they do to me. We eat fresh tomatoes from the garden and bake in the sun together. We take hikes in the forest and wade through fields of wildflowers. She chases rabbits and sniffs at the bugs flying in the air. I remind her bees are our friends. Life is sweeter with her.
Alternating Currents partnered with two local artists, Atlanta Dawn and Heidi Sallows to help bring this project to life.
Atlanta Dawn's Bio:
Quad Cities Native, Atlanta Dawn, is a full-time artist serving business owners and the community with colorful hand-painted murals. Her focus is to create murals that revitalize buildings and promote community engagement either with artwork that has a historical aspect or with designs that encompass the town and represent midwestern culture.
Connect with Atlanta:
Website: www.atld-murals.webflow.io
Heidi Sallows' Bio:
Heidi attended the School of the Art Institute of Chicago and graduated with a Bachelors in Fine Arts in 2007. Her focused studies were in the Green and Eco Art Movements, large format painting, Monumental Art Studies and Mural Histories. Heidi has been a part of creating numerous public, private art and mural projects here in the Quad Cities and also in Arizona, Kansas, Wyoming, Iowa, Illinois, Florida, Amsterdam- Holland, Pueblo-México and Virginia, working hard slinging paint for the last 25 + years.