Art Where You UN-expect
Hannibal is so inspired by art, even our traffic control boxes are a canvas for local artists.
While our mural trail (26 murals at last count) draws a lot of eyes to the walls of our buildings, be sure to look a little lower when you reach an intersection. The Hannibal Arts Council, in conjunction with the Hannibal Board of Public Works, commissioned local artists to wrap our traffic boxes in beauty. It’s a program that’s called “Art out of the Box” and it creates beauty in the least expected place.
Normally a traffic box is a slab of metal you wouldn’t take notice of, but in Hannibal you’ll want to see the little girl snorkeling on the box. There’s a butterfly perched on a flower, a hummingbird in flight, an American flag waving in the breeze — in all, 11 works of art on this most unusual canvas.
We’ve tried to make it easy for you to find our wrapped boxes. Here’s a full list, with a link on each that will point out the location on your phone:
- Broadway and Main Street intersection – “Clearly It’s Me Snorkeling” by Brenda Beck Fisher
- Broadway and Fourth Street intersection – “The Butterfly and the Flower” by Lisa Delcour
- Broadway and Fifth Street intersection – “The Fire Within” by Elizabeth Mannhardt
- Broadway and Seventh Street intersection – “Hummingbird” by Amanda Pendergrass
- Broadway and Tenth Street intersection – “Flag Day” by Tim Judge
- South Maple Avenue (side of Holy Family School) – “Spirit of Truth” by Sheryle Charity
- Broadway and South Grand Avenue intersection – “Roaring to Save the Planet” by Cindy Logan
- Fulton Avenue (behind A.D. Stowell Elementary School) – “Hummingbird” by Brenda Beck Fisher
- 1700 block of Market Street in front of Eugene Field Elementary School – “Under the Sea #1” by Amanda Brown-DeClue
- 2610 St. Mary’s Avenue – “Cardinal” by Kathy Hyer
- 3716 Market Street at Oakwood Elementary School – “Petals” by Elaina Dyke
More Public Art
While you’re out, look for our murals. We have a list here with locations dropped by pin that make the trail easy to follow. You’ll notice other outdoor art with our fire hydrants. And those light pole flags with the Mark Twain quotes in our historic district? Yep, those depictions of Mark Twain are also drawn locally by our amazingly talented artist Brenda Beck Fisher.
We would be remiss not to mention all the art galleries and local artisans we have in Hannibal. Check out our website for a full list. Enjoy!
