New mural design on Ocala water tank unveiled

This weekend, city officials unveiled a new mural design that will be painted around a water tank in downtown Ocala over the coming weeks.

The city hosted an unveiling event on Saturday morning for the mural, which will be painted by Christian Stanley of C. Stanley Creative.

During the event, local residents and city officials used ceremonial paint brushes to splash a community canvas, symbolizing the start of the project.

According to city officials, the mural was made possible through the support of Fine Arts For Ocala, Inc. (FAFO), the Florida Wildlife Corridor Foundation, and Ocala Main Street.

Last week, the previous mural, Natural Flow, was removed from the structure to make way for the new mural.

Painted by Eduardo Mendieta of south Florida, Natural Flow was deaccessioned in August by the Ocala Municipal Arts Commission after it determined it was too costly to repair or repaint the artwork.

Shortly after Natural Flow was deaccessioned, Ocala Cultural Arts issued an open call for artists to create a new “flora and fauna” themed mural for the water tank.

The new mural will cover the entire tank, which holds a million gallons of the city of Ocala’s drinking water.

According to his website, Stanley and his wife, Jessica, met in 2017 and formed C. Stanley Creative shortly thereafter. Based in Orlando, the couple has painted dozens of murals across the United States.

“Christian’s work often calls back to the flora and fauna of home, with occasional fantasy or surreal themes. His process involves concepting, digital illustration, and painting with the use of custom-made stencils, spray paint, and acrylic paint,” reads a statement from the couple’s website.

In addition to multiple murals in Orlando, regionally, C. Stanley Creative has been behind murals in Williston, Lakeland, Inverness, and other parts of Central Florida in recent years.