At the corner of Third Street and Frankfort Avenue sits a building with larger-than-life paintings of local musical legends Leon Russell and The Gap Band. The likenesses of Wayman Tisdale and Aretha Franklin are there too. Or at least they were.
Now, the walls have a fresh coat of white paint and the owner of the building has received some backlash over the decision.
Daniel Rotelli told KWGS the murals were starting to fade. He plans to update the artwork with a whole new Leon Russell and more. The white paint is simply to prep the area for the next installation.
“The exciting thing for me about all the energy and attention is that it's validated that this art installation has been really important to the city,” said Rotelli. “Because, man, when we covered those things up, did we ever get a public, you know, outlash.”
Rotelli said he doesn’t want to give too much away because he hopes people will enjoy the artists’ process while the mural slowly takes shape. Their plan is to revisit a previous concept, the “original Tulsa sound theme,” and to showcase the roots behind the city’s musical history.
The murals have changed twice since Rotelli first commissioned their installation from artist JEKS, otherwise known as Brian Lewis. JEKS is heading down to Tulsa from North Carolina to install the new murals this week.
Despite the initial backlash, Rotelli thinks Tulsans will love the update.
“These things are, you know, they're an evolution and a work in progress, and do I think this will be the last time we improve them? Probably not.”
The installation is expected to be completed within the next three weeks. Tulsans are encouraged to watch the process, but Rotelli asks they refrain from asking too many questions as the artist works.
