Community Collaboration Brings Holiday-Themed Artwork to Life!
A vibrant new mural is underway in Santa Claus, Indiana, featuring Santa mid-snowball toss, surrounded by children and reindeer, with a whimsical snow globe designed for photo opportunities.
In fall 2024, the Spencer County Visitors Bureau assembled a small group of community members and applied for a grant to attend the Creative Convergence Workshop—a program offered by the Indiana Arts Commission in partnership with Ball State’s Indiana Communities Institute. After completing the workshop, the group successfully applied for a project grant to fund a community mural celebrating the town’s festive identity.
The mural is a collaborative effort by the Santa Claus Arts Group, with design led by local artist Shelly Goodrich of Goodlife Design. In addition to Shelly, the Santa Claus Arts group includes Tricia Vaal of the Santa Claus Town Council; Brooke Blair of America’s Christmas Hometown, Inc.; Lacey Kilbarger, a local artist and elementary art teacher; and Melissa Arnold of the Spencer County Visitors Bureau, Inc.
The mural will be installed on the south-facing exterior wall of Holiday Foods, generously donated by Winkler, Inc. This highly visible location provides an ideal area to bring festive cheer to residents and visitors alike year-round.
“This mural is part of our ongoing effort to expand local art opportunities and highlight the festive spirit of Santa Claus, Indiana,” said Melissa Arnold, executive director of the Spencer County Visitors Bureau. “We can’t wait to see families capturing memories in front of the snow globe photo op throughout the year!”
Community support helping bring the mural to life includes:
- Santa Claus Exterior Cleaning – provided wall-cleaning services
- Mulzer’s Crushed Stone – contributed pea gravel for the mural base
- Goodrich Home & Property Care – offered general assistance with setup and groundwork
- Klem’s Signs & Restyling – donated signage for installation site
Others interested in supporting the mural project can contact Melissa Arnold at the Spencer County Visitors Bureau.
- Email: marnold@SantaClausInd.org
- Phone: (812) 937-4199
Volunteer opportunities will be available during the mural installation. For dates, times, and general updates, follow Santa Claus Arts on Facebook at Facebook.com/SantaClausArts
Creative Convergence, a partnership between the Indiana Arts Commission and the Indiana Communities Institute at Ball State University’s Miller College of Business, offers a team-based workshop and funding opportunity aimed at creative community development. Piloted in 2023 and launched in 2024, Creative Convergence is an outgrowth of a research study released by ICI in 2022. “Planning with Arts & Culture” examined how Indiana municipalities were utilizing local arts and culture in their community and economic strategies. Key amongst the findings was the expressed need for support in identifying and leveraging the creative sector to improve quality of life for all.
