Springfield getting 'elusive' mural

For some people in Springfield, the city’s been lacking without a particular piece of public artwork.

Artist Andrea Ehrhardt is changing that. She’s started work on a “Greetings from Springfield” mural – the kind that’s popped up in cities from coast to coast and even in nearby Branson. Now, Springfield is getting one of the murals commonly painted with a city’s name in block letters filled with images illustrating its history, industry and culture. The style emulates the “Greetings from” postcards popularized in the 1930s and 1940s.

Ehrhardt is painting one in downtown Springfield on the brick of the Discovery Center building, 438 E. St. Louis St. She’d been looking for years for the right spot in Springfield and Discovery Center administrators say she recently approached them.

“I said, ‘Heck yes,’” said Rob Blevins, executive director for the Discovery Center, in the release. “As a science center funded by the community, it’s our responsibility to drive the Springfield economy through advocating and welcoming tourism while also developing a future workforce that’s willing and able to use their hands and their minds – whether that’s in health care, science or remanufacturing. That’s just part of our mission.”

The outline for the mural already is up on the Discovery Center’s west wall, and the next step is to fill in each letter with images familiar to Springfield, the release said.

Ehrhardt is organized as Paint it Red LLC, and she’s known for painting the butterfly wings at 328 South Ave. that have been a popular stop for photos and social media posts.