Danny Graves, a local artist and youth coordinator at the Madison Public Library, has been working on a dedication mural at the end of the Four Freedoms Trail.
The mural is currently being painted on the side of the bathrooms that were constructed at the end of the Four Freedoms Trail, and the park located in downtown Pinetta.
The mural features The Madison, a Pacific Type 511 Steam Train that ran from Valdosta through Madison County from 1922 until sometime in the 1950s.
“A lot of people don’t like the colors of the bathroom walls,” said Graves. “So when they see my painting, they really like it because it takes their focus off the paint color.”
Graves also said that pictures of the mural have received a lot of hits on his Facebook page, Danny Graves Art.
The engine was completed around Wednesday, June 1, and Graves states that his next task for the mural will be to paint the rusty red tracks and a surrounding landscape, of which he is using reference from local farmlands.
Graves stated that something that interested him about painting the train is that only five colors were used in the painting; two shades of grey, white, black and yellow.
“I’m interested in painting the rails, as it will bring color to my mural,” said Graves, jovially.
The bathrooms, which were built roughly six months ago by the order of the Tourism Development Council, will provide a nice resting stop for bicyclers who trek down Four Freedoms Trail and the 103-mile bike loop of Madison County.
Graves can only work on certain days of the week, when he is not working at the library, and only during certain times of the day. The side of the bathroom wall where he is painting does not get a lot of shade from the hot Florida sun, and Graves tries to only go out after the hottest part of the day has passed.
The mural is expected to be finished long before October, when the Madison Chamber of Commerce plans to hold a dedication ceremony for the Four Freedoms Trail public restroom, where, undoubtedly, the stunning mural will play an important role in promoting the trail.