RUTLAND — As if designating by design, the hooks are ready for coats.
Young patrons at the Rutland Free Public Library now have a colorful,
artful coat area, where a Rutland artist turned simple coat hooks into art with a splash of color.
“Aislinn initially asked if I would be interested in coming up with something that would cover up the hardware from having the coat racks reinstalled,” Alison Stevenson said.
Aislinn is Aislinn Lewis, the youth services librarian.
“I started with ideas of something simple and cute (such as ladybugs or flowers), but I had a few weeks before I was going to be back in town so I had a bit of time to think about what would be appropriate for the space, and the idea really grew. I kept thinking about the coat rack and what made sense to go on it.
“That was my starting point, and then, because it’s in the children’s section of the library, I started to think about the different coats and items storybook characters might hang up if they were to visit the library themselves,” Stevenson said.
“I also really liked the idea that the mural can be a game for patrons to play where they try to figure out which storybook character each item belongs to,” she added.
“I was just thrilled that Aislinn and Kerry (Remington, library director) and the other library staff were immediately on board and supportive, because the mural that I pitched to them was a much bigger project than what they’d actually asked me to do.
“They really let me run with my ideas, and it was so much fun to paint and get suggestions from my own kids and others about what characters to include,” Stevenson said.
“I focused on the classics, and love that we have so many references (15) in such a small space,” she said.
Spoiler alert: If you intend to quiz yourself, skip this. The characters referenced are, from left to right: Cat in the Hat; Winnie the Pooh; Harry Potter; Angelina Ballerina; Puss in Boots; Paddington Bear; Blueberries for Sal; Max from Where the Wild Things Are; Cinderella; The Very Hungry Caterpillar; Pete the Cat; Harold and the Purple Crayon; Courderoy; Clifford the Big Red Dog; and Little Red Riding Hood.
Lewis said that “the mural came about quite by accident. We had to reinstall the coat rack, and after, it needed to be repainted. It seemed like a good opportunity to paint it something adorable, like a lady bug pattern, or rain drops, rather than trying to match the existing beige paint.
“I reached out to an artist who lives in town and asked if she wanted to do it, since she is far more skilled than I am with a paintbrush. Her response was an immediate, ‘absolutely!’ She came in a week later and asked if she could paint on the wall behind the coat rack because she had an idea,” Lewis said of Stevenson’s plans.
“She showed me her sketch of an amazing concept of famous children’s book characters, who had hung their clothes on the coat rack. It was so charming. We had to go with it. If you look around the children’s room, we actually have several local artists represented.
“Mary Calkins, a part-time library employee, did an amazing mural when the library was closed during the pandemic. Artist Jen Niles did a series of decorative panels of cats and dogs reading several years ago, and a town Girl Scout troop painted the puppet theater and did a huge mural in the storytime room as part of their service mission,” Lewis said.
“It’s really nice to watch the Children’s Room constantly grow and evolve and become even more beautiful with all this amazing artwork.
“The patrons actually did get to see the coat rack mural in progress. She painted it over several days when the library was open. It was so exciting for all of us,” Lewis said.
“Every time she came in, another layer was added. First was the pencil outline, then some primer, and several coats of finish paint. In all, 15 different children’s book characters are represented. It adds such joy to the space. And we love watching families identify the characters and books represented, and talk about the ones that they have read,” Lewis said.
Stevenson liked painting with an audience.
“It was very smooth and really fun to get to paint while patrons were coming in and out of the area. Everyone was amazingly respectful of the wet paint and tapedoff area, especially considering that it was all coming to life at eye level for young patrons,” Stevenson said.
“Kids would sometimes come over and talk with me while I was working,, which was very nice of them, and I was happy to show them what I was doing. Some couldn’t believe that I was getting to draw and paint on the walls, and others had fun guessing what I was making.
“I’m also very grateful to my two boys for spending so many summer days in the library as well. They both love books and reading, but the mural took about five days to complete spaced out over a couple of weeks time in August, so I was glad that they were such good sports about it as well,” Stevenson said.
Library patrons, including some of Stevenson’s own students, appreciated the artwork.
“It makes me so happy to have been able to make something that I can share with the community. I work across the street at Naquag Elementary, which recently took a field trip to the library for the Smithsonian Exhibit, so I’ve had students make the connection that I was the mural artist and they’ve been so sweet telling me how much they like it.
“We’re regular library patrons as well, so I love seeing that area being used and having kids notice the mural and figure out which characters are being referenced,” Stevenson said.
