Beautification is part of Keep Pickens Beautiful’s mission, and is important in making our community an attractive and vibrant place to live. It is a consistent quality of life indicator, and KPB is always ready to add new projects to help improve our county. While we sponsor a range of programs to help beautify our community. Designing and painting historic murals throughout our county is one of our oldest projects, and one of the most visible.
Murals showcase our local history
Keep Pickens Beautiful has sponsored several murals throughout Pickens county to beautify and educate our community. Each showcases an important and significant period in our local history. However, since they are located outdoors, they occasionally need some attention.
The mural at Marble Hill has been refreshed by our local artist, Mary Ann Rentz. In addition to her artistic contributions, Mary Ann also serves on the KPB Board of Directors. Ms. Rentz has painted five murals that are displayed in various locations throughout Pickens County to honor the history of our beautiful surroundings.
The Marble Hill mural shows the history along Long Swamp Creek. In addition to this mural, Mary Ann has painted several others:
- The mural in downtown Jasper illustrates the early days of our county
- Talking Rock has one that shows when the railroad first arrived to Pickens CountyÂ
- Talking Rock has a second that depicts the movement of the Native Americans in the region
- A fifth mural is in downtown Jasper near the intersection of Burnt Mountain and Church Street. It shows the history of Native Americans in our county.
Pickens County has a long and fascinating history. Murals are an effective way of displaying that history while also educating the community. KPB is thankful to Mary Ann’s efforts throughout the years to design and paint these intricate and beautiful art pieces throughout our county.
KPB is always looking for volunteers to help with projects and programs. If you are interested in helping to maintain our existing murals, if you’d like to add additional art pieces in our community, or if you’d like to help with other beautification projects, let us know!