Created By: Downtown Pittsfield, Inc.
The Pittsfield Let It Shine! Public Art Partnership and the Westside Legends were pleased to welcome back Pops Peterson to Pittsfield to create 2 new murals for the Riverside Sitting Park at the corner of Columbus and Dewey Avenues. These new murals add to Pops’ monument-sized, “Walk with Her,” which has been a beloved landmark on College Way since it was mounted in 2021.
Pops Peterson is an artist and public speaker from the Berkshires who gained national recognition for his “Reinventing Rockwell” collection. This collection reimagines the iconic works of Norman Rockwell as if they were painted in modern times, with characters reflecting the diversity of today’s America. Peterson’s work envisions social change and expresses his desire for a positive, inclusive, and just world. His celebrated collection became the longest-running solo exhibition in the history of the Norman Rockwell Museum and is currently on view in the Massachusetts State House. Peterson’s first mural, “Walk with Her,” has become a treasured Pittsfield landmark on College Way, featuring the monumental character, “Rainbow Ruby” who inspires people to walk undeterred through adversity.
As a public speaker on arts and civil rights, Peterson has been featured in various events and institutions, including the Norman Rockwell Museum, The Munson Arts Museum, The New School, and numerous public schools. His multimedia lecture, “Portraits of Freedom,” explores the contributions of artists to civil rights advancement, and “The Making of a Protest Artist” surveys international protest art through history.
Peterson’s work has been featured in multiple publications, including The New York Times and The Boston Globe, and he has been featured in textbooks, on television, and in museums across America. He is eternally grateful to the City of Pittsfield for their love and support.
About the Pittsfield Murals: “Wings” & “Two Colors of Water”
This year, Pops is offering two new inspirational images to the Pittsfield landscape. “Wings” is an emotional declaration that wounds, when they heal, build strength of character. His vision of legs running through the clouds depicts the actual scars Peterson has carried since the age of 10, when he suffered 3rd degree burns playing with fire. The second, larger mural, “Two Colors of Water”, is inspired by Gordon Parks’ documentary photos of the Jim Crow South. It features two young boys at segregated water fountains, the white child helping his black friend reach the waterspout. Peterson intends to show that people are stronger together and hopes it will promote brotherly love in the community.
This point of interest is part of the tour: Mural Tour of Pittsfield, MA
Please send change requests to changerequest@pocketsights.com.