FRIDAY, JULY 15, 2022
A water tower in Bryan, Ohio, is getting a “sweet” new design featuring large painted lollipops thanks to Spangler Candy Company. The water tower is in the middle of the company’s campus, which produces candy brands like Dum-Dum Lollipops and Necco Wafers.
Kirk Vashaw, CEO of Spangler Candy, presented the plan at the Bryan Board of Public Affairs' public meeting on July 5. The presentation highlighted the new tower design, including eight large Dum-Dum lollipops surrounding the circumference of the main tank, with the legs of the tower painted white to represent lollipop sticks and the words “Bryan, Ohio” painted in large, capital letters down the riser pipe.
The water tower will be painted by award-winning muralist Eric Henn, who has worked on water towers and “super-sized” murals for more than 30 years. His work has been featured all of the world and has been awarded “Artist of the Year,” “Muralist of the Year” and “Tank of the Year”, among others.
The new design was created in collaboration between Spangler, Henn, the tower painting contractor and the BPA. The board also approved the design and accepted financial contributions during the meeting.
“We are really excited for the opportunity to make this water tower an even larger asset for our community besides just holding water,” said Vashaw. “With its new design painted by a world-famous artist, it will become a new landmark for Bryan and will provide a great opportunity to promote our city.”
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A water tower in Bryan, Ohio, is getting a “sweet” new design featuring large painted lollipops thanks to Spangler Candy Company. |
Henn will reportedly begin painting the tower design in the fall, following the city’s completion of the tower’s base coat and weather permitting. The BPA will cover the costs to prepare and add the base coat of paint for the tower, which is completed every 15 years.
According to the company’s release, Spangler has offered to make a $25,000 contribution toward the base coat paint and future maintenance. Additionally, it will cover all costs for the painting artist, labor, expenses and supplies.
“We are grateful to Spangler for their financial support of this project,” said Derek Schultz, Operations Manager for the Bryan Municipal Utilities. “We have been working with Spangler for a long time and we are really pleased about the results – an impressive water tower design that will benefit the community, with no additional cost to the local rate payers.”
“It has been a pleasure to work with the BPA and Bryan Municipal Utilities,” Vashaw agreed. “They all have a very clear interest in doing what is best for its rate payers and for the community as a whole.”
Vashaw explained that Spangler also intends to provide a viewing platform on its property for visitors to take photographs and selfies. Additionally, the company is developing a new destination attraction in Bryan, and the water tower is anticipated to enhance its impact. Spangler Candy World is currently scheduled to open in 2023.
“Spangler’s Basic Beliefs include a commitment to be a positive force in the communities where we do business,” Vashaw said. “This water tower will be a work of art that makes visiting and living in our community more fun.”
Other Eric Henn Murals
In 2020, a water tank designed and painted by Henn showcasing a one-of-a-kind seascape mural in Destin, Florida, won the 2020 Tank of the Year award from protective coatings manufacturer Tnemec Company Inc. The tank won out over nearly 300 other water tank nominations, with more than 23,000 online votes from across the United States and Canada.
The Destin tank was selected by a panel of water tank enthusiasts based on criteria such as artistic value, significance of the tank to the community and challenges encountered during the project. The ocean mural paid homage to local wildlife that call the Gulf of Mexico home, most notably, sea turtles and dolphins.
The tank was coated using Tnemec’s UV-resistant, long-lasting fluoropolymer finish, Series 700 HydroFlon, which the company reports will help preserve the color and design for a long time, even in Florida’s hot and humid climate.
More recently, Henn has been working as the lead muralist on the Glass City River Wall, a mural in Toledo, Ohio, that is set to be the largest of its kind in the United States once completed. The project encompasses the Archer Daniels Midland (ADM) concrete grain silos in Toledo, east of I-75 along the Maumee River. 82,365 cars reportedly pass by the location every day, equating to over 30 million views per year.
The mural wraps around 28 concrete grain silos total. According to reports, the project, designed by artist Gabe Gault, will require about 5,000 gallons of paint.
Featuring Gault’s signature use of flora and fauna in his art, 25 silos on the mural include wild sunflowers, or Sun Chokes. Symbolically, the sunflowers represent hope, faith and good fortune, while historically it was one of the key crops for indigenous people of the region. This portion of the mural is completed.
Portraits on the last three silos—representing the significance of the Native American women and children who planted and maintained the corn fields that historically lined the banks of the Maumee river from Toledo to Fort Wayne, Indiana—are depictive of The Miami Tribe of Oklahoma, The Shawnee Tribe, and Lakota Tribe.
Each of the models is reportedly a citizen of a Tribal Nation today. The portraits are depicted wearing jewelry common to the groups both in the past and present, with the mix of modern-day clothing and this jewelry demonstrating “that these people represent living communities, each with connections to their community’s history and ancestors.”
Tnemec Company, Inc. products were chosen for the project, due to its investment in developing innovative technologies for coating projects that require extra protection against environmental elements. Both Tnemec products being used are low VOC and water-based.
Tagged categories: Artists; Color; Color + Design; Design; Murals; Program/Project Management; Tank exteriors; Tnemec; Tower; Water Tanks
