STATE CENTER — Local artist Eden Petermeier has spent months pouring time, talent and love into the town’s newest mural, on the side of State Center Fitness/Laundromat at 101 E. Main St., owned by Nicole Engel. The State Center Development Association commissioned the project, which was completed Nov. 12.

A mural had previously been located on the building, but after the exterior was repainted over the summer, it provided the opportunity to add a new one.

“We actually had Eden touch up a mural on another building, and she did a great job, so we reached out to see if she would like to do (a new mural) for the development group, and asked her for some ideas,” said Association President Jim Eckhardt.

Petermeier’s past mural work includes one at the former Rose Creamery (taken down), a 2018 project in Melbourne (no longer visible), and artistic creations that decorate West Marshall High School’s concession stand. She has no formal art training. After being asked to do the mural back in March, she then came up with three different artistic renderings. The association then voted on which to accept.

“We had a board meeting and decided on this one, to incorporate the things we thought were important for State Center,” Eckhardt said.

The finished piece includes the town’s new slogan: “At the Center of It All.” To Petermeier, this meant making roses front and center of the design, while also working in the school’s colors, water tower and flags (American, state and city), against a dreamy sunset backdrop.

“Those are all roses that are grown in our actual rose garden. I definitely wanted to put a lot of personal effort into creating something that was going to be really personal for the community,” she said.

She used Procreate, the leading creative application made for iPad, where she fashioned a design, then got to work painting it this past July.

“I did free hand the flags and the rose garden, but for the outline structure where I wanted it to be straight, even and in proportion, I did use a projector,” she said. “I took an image of the water tower in Procreate and did an outline of it, then projected it at night, using my scissor lift to get the higher portions, and then everything else I used a ladder or step stool.”

She added that most of the mural was waist-level or higher to reach, with three windows to work around.

“I knew there was going to be three separate sections — I wanted it to be a scene that flowed together,” she added.

The association gave her creative license to blend and experiment with color. Painting on a metal building had its difficulties.

“It has a lot of grooves and dips into it…the biggest challenge for me was the texture of the wall,” she noted.

She took a break from the project in August to turn her attention to the concession stand mural, while also juggling the duties of being a stay-at-home-mom.

“At that point I was working in the evenings or early mornings before my husband went to work. I can’t give an exact number of hours I worked on it because I stopped keeping track,” she said. “It was not the quickest process of creating a mural. It did take a few months.”

Petermeier is open to taking on additional freelance work, and has yet to complete an indoor mural. While being a mom is her full-time job, she’s excited about what the future might hold. As long as the work remains enjoyable, she plans to continue her art.

The State Center Development Association is a 501(c)(3) non-profit dedicated to historic preservation and building rehabilitation. It runs and maintains Watson’s Grocery Store, a one-room schoolhouse and train depot and an antique barber shop. It also spearheads local events.

“It’s totally a volunteer organization and you can join for 25 bucks a year,” Eckhardt said.

Its Old Fashioned Christmas on Main is slated for Dec. 5, a magical day on Main Street filled with festive fun, local shopping, holiday treats and Christmas cheer. To contact the association, call 641-483-3002. Leave a message. Learn more at: www.statecenterdevelopment.org.