Greetings from Benson

Greetings from Benson was painted in October 2020 with Jennifer Wood as Benson’s first commissioned mural, transforming the side of the Neighbors & Associates building in downtown Benson into a vintage-inspired postcard to the town itself. Chosen through a call to artists issued by the Benson Art Advisory Board, our design was selected for its ability to welcome people in a way that felt both nostalgic and rooted in place. The location was central to that intention: the Town’s call noted that approximately 11,000 cars pass the building each day, making it an ideal wall for a mural meant to greet those entering Benson and help shape the future tone of public art in the town.

The mural gathers together pieces of Benson’s identity — mules, gospel singers, sweet potatoes, trains, local architecture, and the Mule Barn itself — into a single composition designed to feel celebratory, familiar, and full of hometown character. The postcard format made room for many stories to live side by side, while the intersecting lines running through each quadrant echoed the major roadways that meet in Benson, tying the design not only to the town’s history, but to its role as a place people pass through, arrive in, and return to. The overall effect was meant to feel like both a welcome and a reflection: a visual reminder of what makes Benson distinctly itself. 

Part of what made the mural more meaningful was the local knowledge shared with us while we were developing the design. Dan spoke with me about his experiences singing in the gospel choir, adding a personal layer to that imagery beyond symbolism alone. The current owner of the Mule Barn, located just a block from the mural site, also gave me a tour of the barn and shared not only its history, but the generations of his family who had operated it and what it had meant to the town over time. After meeting with him, photographing the structure, and hearing that story firsthand, I added the Mule Barn into the mural as another important thread in Benson’s visual identity.

What I remember most is how quickly the mural began to belong to the town while we were still painting it. People stopped, honked, called out, and shared their excitement as the image came together, making it clear that the wall was already becoming part of Benson’s daily life. Dan’s wife Pam, who also worked at Neighbors & Associates, stopped by to talk with me almost every day, and through those conversations I had the pleasure of meeting not only Pam and Dan, but also their daughter and granddaughters. In that way, the mural became part of a family memory as much as a town landmark — something carried not only by the wall itself, but by the people who witnessed it taking shape. Years later, it still stands as a point of pride.

I’ve also been reminded since then how public art keeps connecting people in unexpected ways. While visiting my husband’s family in South Carolina, I met a woman who mentioned she would soon be traveling to see her sister in Benson. When I told her I had painted the mural there, she made a point to stop and photograph it, then later shared the image with me on Instagram. It was one of those small, unexpected moments that reminded me how murals can keep linking people, places, and stories long after the paint has dried.

Title: Greetings from Benson
Size: 12' h x 24' w
Site/City: Main St. Benson, NC. 
Medium: Exterior latex paint.
Date: October 2020.