This episode features the “City of Four Seasons” mural painted by Diamond Cash. Hendersonville is known as the city of four seasons because of its consistent temperate weather. Residents here enjoy the pleasures of each season without having to experience the extremes that can come with each of them in other parts of the world.

Artist and photographer Diamond Cash created the City of Four Seasons mural for her hometown of Hendersonville, NC. From an early age, Diamond has always had a talent for photography, painting, and drawing. She has a B.A. in Studio Arts from UNC Greensboro. She is passionate about teaching art and believes she can teach anyone who is willing to learn. Diamond’s work has been featured in several magazines, and she has been commissioned by Hendersonville to create several significant public art projects.

It includes two hands clasping in front of the Rainbow flag signifying diversity and inclusion. The name of the town hovers over well-known symbols of the city. As a “Bee and Tree” city, images of both feature prominently. Since bears are a symbol of Hendersonville, two of them lounge at either edge of the scene. The town is very famous for its apples and other delicious veggies. And last but not least, an acoustic guitar highlights the rich musical heritage of the Blue Ridge Mountains.

Diamond tells how she conceived the design for the mural and how she made it come to life.

This episode features the Jump Off Rock mural on the side of the Brooks Tavern building at 142 3rd Ave. West. The date of the original mural is unknown but is estimated to have been painted sometime in the 1920’s. In 2014, the mural was restored by local artist Knox Crowell.

Knox is a trained graphic artist and illustrator with an interest in local history. He is a former director of Henderson County Heritage Museum.

In addition to restoring this mural, Knox has painted nearly half a dozen murals over the years in the area. The main subject of the mural is Jump Off Rock, a large stone outcropping on top of Davis Mountain which rises above Hendersonville just a few miles to the west of downtown. It has long been a tourist destination because of its beautiful views of the surrounding Blue Ridge Mountains. The mural advertised the site and encouraged visitors to make the short drive to enjoy the vistas.

Knox said it was a challenge to bring the iconic wall art back to its former glory and he will tell us about how he did it and the challenges he faced.

Knox will also give us some of the history of Jump Off Rock and Laurel Park, the community where Jump Off Rock is located and where he grew up.

This episode features the Coca-Cola mural at 303 N. Main St. which faces south overlooking 3rd Ave. West.

One might think that a mural advertising America’s favorite soft drink is out of place in the Hendo Art Tour. But there is an interesting history behind these murals that the Coca-Cola company commissioned at the turn of the 20th Century. It is estimated that they installed over 16,000 of these murals all over the United States and especially in the South beginning in the 1890’s.

Over time, many of these vibrant artworks, became weathered and faded. Because of that they became known as “ghost murals.” The term “ghost” refers to their aged appearance, which adds to their nostalgic charm.

Hendersonville has three Coca-Cola murals. The oldest one was painted on the side of the former Justus Pharmacy building in 1907 to advertise the soda fountain inside, which of course served Coca-Cola.

The mural was refurbished by sign painter/artist Andy Thompson, who painted his first sign for Coca-Cola in 1958. Andy Thompson left an indelible mark on the world of Coca-Cola advertising, working with the iconic brand for well over 50 years before his death in 2017. He worked on so many of the company’s murals, that toward the end of his career he could not say exactly how many he had worked on.

Since Andy Thompson is no longer here to talk about his work on the murals, his granddaughter, Amber Thompson, joins us to tell us about her grandfather’s work. Amber is following in Andy’s footsteps with her own sign and mural painting business. Andy began to train her to restore these murals just a year before he died, but she learned enough from him that Coca-Cola is commissioning her to do the restoration work.

Amber will tell us about the history of the Coca-Cola murals, her grandfather’s work on them, and why they are so greatly valued in the communities where they were painted.