Historic Dr. Pepper Mural Restoration
Nearly twenty years ago, while interning for the Topeka Arts Council, my brother-in-law Gavin Turner and I restored the iconic Dr. Pepper mural located on the corner of N Kansas Ave and Gordon in Topeka , KS. This well know. And much beloved mural had been nearly erased by time and weather.
The mural definitely had an amazing aged aesthetic with a wonderful textured mix of old brick and faded paint flakes. In fact, the biggest challenge in restoring the mural was playing connect the dots between the all too few faint traces of paint.
The mural was a favorite location for countless Topeka photographers, particularly those taking high school senior portraits. In fact, while we were working on repainting the mural, we had a number of people complain and express frustration. I am convinced, however, that had we not saved the mural then, there would be nothing left of it today.
A quick Google search reveals that people are still taking photos, even wedding portraits, in front of this historic Topeka imagery. And as cheesy as it sounds, it’s kind of cool to have been a part of making that possible!
The mural definitely had an amazing aged aesthetic with a wonderful textured mix of old brick and faded paint flakes. In fact, the biggest challenge in restoring the mural was playing connect the dots between the all too few faint traces of paint.
The mural was a favorite location for countless Topeka photographers, particularly those taking high school senior portraits. In fact, while we were working on repainting the mural, we had a number of people complain and express frustration. I am convinced, however, that had we not saved the mural then, there would be nothing left of it today.
A quick Google search reveals that people are still taking photos, even wedding portraits, in front of this historic Topeka imagery. And as cheesy as it sounds, it’s kind of cool to have been a part of making that possible!
