The Great Mountain Mural Mega Fest is approaching, with the multiple day event slated for Aug. 2 through Aug. 5 at Southeast Kentucky Community and Technical College.

According to the event’s Facebook Page, the Great Mountain Mural Mega Fest is a gathering of artists, teachers, students, and creative place makers interested in learning how to create large scale outdoor murals.

The event is also geared toward those who want to learn how to: cooperate with property owners and local governments to make public art happen; work with schools, youth and other community members in the design and creation of public murals; integrate the creation of murals into larger plans for community development and creative place making.

The event is a project that is part of Higher Ground in Harlan, according to the Higher Ground website at https://www.highergroundinharlan.com.

The Higher Ground website explains the festival’s workshops will mostly take place at the Godbey Appalachian Center on the Cumberland campus of Southeast Kentucky Community & Technical College. Field projects will also occur in the Tri-Cities area and the city of Harlan.

The Higher Ground website states “the festival builds on six months of open community meetings during 2017-2018 about what people want to see in their murals here. It will build on mural work in the Tri-Cities and Harlan in the works from artists Pam Oldfield Meade, Elaine Conradi and Lacy Hale, who will be in residence during Mural Fest. The Tri-Cities project is focusing on local flora.”

Support for the Great Mountain Mural Mega Fest is being provided by the Appalachian Regional Commission, the Appalachian Impact Fund, the Foundation for Appalachian Kentucky, Berea College’s Partners for Education, and The Emily Hall Tremaine Foundation.

For more information, go to https://www.highergroundinharlan.com.