What does the City of Mobile do when the old civic center it is demolishing has two beautiful Conrad Albrizio mosaic murals on the walls that are about to come down?
Why, you hire a national expert in historic preservation. The City has done this before. The murals have to be carefully extracted from the dying building and preserved for placement back into the new civic center that will take its place.
Mobile has been preserving much of its history for 300 years. The City isn’t about to let go of two Albrizio masterpieces that paint a piece of that history.
Mayor Sandy Stimpson explained Wednesday what they are doing:
As we move into the final stages of the Mobile Civic Center’s demolition, our team is taking great care to remove and preserve Conrad Albrizio’s beautiful mosaic masterpieces, Mardi Gras and Circus. Once the city’s new entertainment arena is built, these mosaics will serve as a prominent feature that welcomes guests while highlighting the history of the property and Mobile’s longstanding Carnival traditions.
"However, moving these murals is no easy task. Each one is 16 feet tall, 45 feet wide, and weighs an estimated 58 tons. The planning and engineering efforts surrounding this project are being led by ICC Commonwealth, a national leader in historic preservation with extensive experience relocating large, historic structures.
"The first of the two murals, Mardi Gras, was successfully moved into the former Expo Hall today. In the video below, our project manager, Sam Matheny from Volkert, discusses the complexities and significance of this critical step in the project.
The civic center mural "Mardi Gras" was painted in 1965 by Louisiana-based muralist Conrad Albrizio. It was his last painting, just eight months before he died.
Albrizio is not well-known in Mobile, but he painted his way into perhaps deserving the title of "Muralist Laureate of Mobile." No such title has been suggested, other than here by 1819 News. Albrizio's murals are all over Mobile, putting much of the history of local accomplishments onto walls.
A 1949 explosion of frescoes on maritime trade in the Waterman building on St. Joseph Street.
A 1958 mosaic of a mother and child in the old YMCA building on Government Street.
A 1965 mosaic of the “History of Medicine” at the University of South Alabama Health Center in 1965.
The two Albrizio murals from the dying civic center will live on.
"Conrad Albrizio was committed to the idea of the artist as a socially conscious leader." __ Author Carolyn Bercier in her book, “The Frescoes of Conrad Albrizio: Public Murals in the Midcentury South.”
Jim ‘Zig’ Zeigler writes about Alabama’s people, places, events, groups and prominent deaths. He is a former Alabama Public Service Commissioner and State Auditor. You can reach him for comments at ZeiglerElderCare@yahoo.com.
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