2026 Town Center Murals:
Vermont State Symbols
State Symbols Scavenger hunt
We have a fun scavenger hunt for you this year - click on the button below to go on a hunt to find all the Vermont State Symbols in the murals! Can you spot them all?
About the murals
Vermont State Seal
Designed by: Ira Allen
Painted by: Darcie Rankin, Jed Rankin, Cali Rankin, Jane Nathan, Jackie Roy and Judy Bush
Hermit Thrush, Sugar Maple & Bear’s Head Tooth Fungus
Designed by: Judy Bush
Painted by: Judy Bush, Amy Ludwin, Fran Huntoon and Jane Nathan
When I thought about designing this mural with a tree, a bird, a fungus and a flavor (maple) it all seemed to fit naturally in the setting of a sugarbush and everything seemed to revolve around the seasons. The maple flavor in the steam coming from the sugar house in early spring, then the arrival of the hermit thrush, the fungus on a rotting maple log in late summer and of course the brilliant colors of the maple foliage in the fall. I enjoyed the workshops and support from other artists as we planned and painted. I especially want to thank Amy, Fran, Jane and Jackie for all the work they did in painting.
-Judy Bush
State Soil, Terrestrial Fossil & State Vegetable
Designed by: Raechel Barone
Painted by: Raechel Barone and ChiChi Barrett
When I first saw a picture of the Tunbridge soil series it looked like a delicious layer cake dessert to me! That’s what drew me to the trio of the soil series, the mammoth tooth and tusk, and the Gilfeather turnip. In trying to learn a bit about each symbol I found out that the 1848 discovery of the mammoth tooth and tusk at Mount Holly was made by workers who were building the Rutland to Burlington Railroad. Later, additional tusks and bones were found in Richmond in 1859 and 1866! I chose to paint the mural in a style reminiscent of the artwork you might see in a Ben & Jerry’s scoop shop- perhaps the most famous “un-official” Vermont symbol. It was lots of fun working with Chi Chi, who lent her painting skills to this panel as well as all the other artists who worked to make this project happen.
- Raechel Barone
The Red Clover and the Honey Bee
Designed and painted by: Elizabeth Meyer
The Red Clover and the Honey Bee
A bright blue sky stretches above
A fresh green grassy meadow where
A tree hides a bee hive in the mosaic of its bark
White sweet bed straw scents the air under
Pink globes of blooming milkweed rising high
While red and white clovers mingle and wait
For bees floating through sunshine to
Sip nectar, bath in pollen, and then coated in yellow
Bring their gifts to the sisters of the hive.
Through summer, I watched, sketched, and painted
This mural inspired by the meadow’s pure beauty
It’s colors and creatures defining Vermont
-Elizabeth Meyer
Brook Trout and Fly-Fishing Fly
Designed and painted by: Ellen Falsgraf
The colors of the brook trout were my inspiration to choose this group of VT symbols. The blue water at the bottom represents clean, cold running water where there are Brook trout. The green background represents a lake, reservoir and warmer river water where you would find a walleye. In the middle of the mural is the Vermont State Fly-Fishing Fly, Governor Aiken Bucktail Streamer, which was designed to portray a small baitfish. The actual size of the bucktail streamer is about 2-4 inches, but I took the liberty of showing it much larger to show the details of the feathers and tinsel used in the tie.
Participation in this year's mural painting was different because we were painting inside and not directly on the panels outside the building. Painting our mural designs together was fun and interesting and seeing the other mural painters progress and approach to their designs along with our mini critique sessions and help with color choices, color mixing, and support of each other was an enjoyable shared experience.
-Ellen Falsgraf
Milk & Apples
Designed and painted by: Beth Whiting
My mural represents two well known Vermont products: milk and apples. Being a farmer myself I gravitated towards the option to paint something in solidarity with my fellow farmers that work so hard to make amazing products. I love to picnic with friends so I was inspired to create a picnic scene in simplistic almost graphic novel form just to highlight the joy of sharing food together. Apple pie is about picking, making, baking and sharing! If we don’t have bees to pollinate and farms with cows to provide us milk Vermont's agriculture future will be at risk. EAT MORE LOCAL and support family farms!
-Beth Whiting
Painted Turtle & Northern Leopard Frog
Designed and painted by: Julie Longstreth
I have always been impressed by animal markings and colors and how these attributes ensure their survival. The state amphibian, Leopard frog, with its camouflage umber and chartreuse spots; the state reptile Painted turtle hatching straight out of its egg with red, yellow and white topographic lines—and the spackled Granite state rock anchoring us all to the landscape of Vermont. I took liberty to reimagine the bottom shell or plastron of the turtle as its very own palette, as if it painted itself! The shape is similar enough.
-Julie Longstreth
Monarch, Talc & Gossular Garnet
Designed by: Nelle Waters
Painted by: Nelle and Laurel Waters
This is the first mural I have designed all by myself. When I was asked to paint the three symbols together, I wanted to give the bright orange Monarch a deep navy background to emerge from, with little ones around that, and an unusual base of Vermont stones for the Monarchs to look like they were rising over. While creating this design, I also learned that Vermont Talc is used to make baby powder, and that there are actually many more official Vermont state stones than just one!
-Nelle Waters
Marble, Morgan Horse & Randall Linebacker Cattle
Designed and painted by: Jamie Quint
As a newcomer to Vermont, I am struck by the solid history and stunning beauty of this state.
Having the opportunity to be a part of this mural project to represent some of the iconic symbols in an artistic format has been truly special for me.
I wanted to convey the feeling of the Green Mountain State with its signature color, notable use of marble and the crucial animals that define the state.
-Jamie Quint
Marine Fossil: Charlotte Whale
Designed by: Evie Wagner
Painted by: Evie Wagner and Sarah Willard
While painting my mural, I thought about what Vermont looked like 12,000 years ago with an inland sea and the sun setting over an ocean instead of the lake. It must’ve been surprising in 1849 when railroad workers in Charlotte found a beluga whale skeleton. My favorite part of painting my mural was mixing my colors to fit my vision.
-Evie Wagner
THANK YOU to all of our amazing volunteers for your creativity, passion & dedication in the creation of these murals!
