Spreading a little 'Sunshine'

The legacy of one of McMinnville's most famous natives will be memorialized at one of McMinnville's most iconic locations.

Tuesday morning saw the start of a project which has been years in the planning process. A mural paying tribute to McMinnville native and Country Music Hall of Fame member Dottie West will be painted on the east external wall of the Park Theater. Professional muralist Lucinda Nehemias of Florida was selected from a pool of artists who submitted applications to design and execute the artwork.

"Over the course of this project, we got design quotes and concepts from six muralists and enlisted the advice of our Park Theater Advisory Board, local stakeholders and members of Dottie's family to help us choose the person who would lead the project," Park Theater Assistant Manager Ashley Gillentine Wright said. "Lucinda won out. The grant to create this mural is from the Tennessee Arts Commission."

The Tennessee Arts Commission was created in 1967 by the Tennessee General Assembly to stimulate and encourage the presentation of the visual, literary, music and performing arts and to encourage public interest in the cultural heritage of Tennessee. 

Based in St. Petersburg, Fla., Nehemias has family ties to the area and has visited Warren County many times.

"I grew up in Maryland, but we would come down here in the summer and visit Rock Island and spend time with my cousins here," Nehemias said. "I went to school in Chattanooga at UTC and would come visit Warren County on weekends. I volunteered at the Hart Gallery in Chattanooga and that's when I got into art on the professional side. Growing up, I always did arts and crafts. My mom had a music and art store, so I had all the supplies nearby. After college I moved to St. Petersburg, Fla. and I would come visit here all the time. I still have family here and I have a lot of friends in the area."

Nehemias is an accomplished artist with several elaborate murals to her credit.

"I do this full-time. Murals are my full gig, and I do commission canvas work as well," Nehemias said. "I have an art studio called Artmosphere and there are about 16 of us. There are so many moments where I'm in awe and feel so fortunate to be able to do this.

"I'm really excited for this project. I love realism. I usually do more realism in my canvas work. With murals I do whatever the client wants. I have a contract with the city of Madeira Beach out in St. Pete and I do all their municipal buildings like the marina, the park and the beach-access bathrooms. Those are a lot of dolphins and sea turtles and flowers. I love painting people and I'm really excited about this (Dottie) project and that it is sentimental and historical."

The design for the Dottie mural was a collaboration between the artist, Park Theater management and a community-wide survey.

"They had specific album covers in mind, and they worked pretty closely with Dottie's granddaughter Tess Frizzell and what she wanted," Nehemias said. "They wanted to tie in the lyrics of the song 'Country Sunshine' so that's where the daisies and the bluebird will come in. I love the 'Special Delivery' album cover where she has a shiny shirt and her head tilted back, so we're going to combine the two with her singing and a country background."

Nehemias has blocked off two weeks for the project but said it's hard to pinpoint exactly how long a mural will take.

"With the way the brick is eating this paint, it will probably take a while," Nehemias said with a laugh. "I've been humbled and surprised on every single project. Some of them go by way faster than you'd expect and some take longer. It's not necessarily the design of the mural; it's the texture of the wall. On a canvas, every stroke is one stroke, but when your canvas is a different surface and shape, you're readjusting multiple times. A lot of muralists on something this size would spray it, but I love hand painting and the brush-stroke style, so I'm really excited to get to the good parts."

Park Theater management is also excited to see the commencement of a project which has long been discussed.

"This has been a collaborative process from the beginning. I know the idea of a Dottie West mural in our community predates even the Park Theater and the City being involved in the project, but it really gained steam in 2023 when we began our annual Dottie West Celebration at the Park," Wright said. "We are so excited to honor Dottie in this way with a painted tribute to her iconic 'Special Delivery' album cover and her equally iconic song 'Country Sunshine.' Dottie spent some time in this building when she was growing up in McMinnville, seeing shows and movies, and she even graduated from high school here. Her legacy is strong in this community and we're just so proud for this project to finally be happening. Special thanks go to Director of Public Words Lyndon Bussell for really kickstarting this project and for writing the grant request. No taxpayer money is being spent on this project, but all community members and visitors get to enjoy the mural."

Placement of the mural was carefully chosen with a priority placed on public access for both photographs and for community involvement in the creation of what is hoped to become a local landmark and tourist attraction.

"Two things that make this mural unique is, first, it is at ground level, so it will be perfect for selfies and as a background for local photographers," Wright said. "Second is community members are going to be invited to help with the mural in a paint-by-numbers fashion. It is truly a collaboration of love from the entire community. We will post on our social media when that day will be, but we are thinking sometime early next week. This all depends on weather and Lucinda's progress. It will be first-come, first-served when we announce the date and times."

The mural is designed to serve as a point of pride for local residents as well as an added highlight for tourists wishing to commemorate their visit to Warren County.

"Public art does more than just beautify a wall. It tells a story in a way words can’t," Tourism & Marketing Manager, Visit McMinnville, TN Jordan Pupols said. "This new mural at the Park Theater is the perfect combination of artistry and heritage, breathing one of McMinnville's musical legacies directly into the public eye. Through it, we're not only paying tribute to the legendary Dottie West; we’re also continuing to build a destination rooted in the celebration of culture. When visitors see this, they aren't just seeing paint. They’re feeling the soul of a town."