New mural in Knowlesville celebrates the Widewaters
Provided photo – Arthur Barnes is pictured next to a 10-foot-long mural he installed on Monday at the corner of Presbyterian and Knowlesville roads at a former fire station.
KNOWLESVILLE – Arthur Barnes installed his fourth canal-themed mural in Orleans County on Monday. His latest effort is in Knowlesville and features the Widewaters along Presbyterian Road.
The mural combines two of Barnes’ favorite themes: the canal and dusk. He has other canal murals at the Holley-Murray Historical Society, in Albion on the former Burgio Tire and in Medina on the Canal Country Artisans building.
Barnes lives near Knowlesville in a farm house on Long Bridge Road. He remembers when Knowlesville was a bustling little town with a grocery store, hotel, Post Office and fire station.
He hopes the mural can be part of a rebirth of the town.
“I wanted to give some props to Knowlesville,” he said.
He thinks the Widewaters is an unusual location on the canal. It feels like a wildlife refuge in that spot. His mural, mounted on a building owned by Sam Swan, includes a painting of a heron.
Barnes received some funding support in creating the mural from the New York State Council on the Arts and the Genesee-Orleans Regional Arts Council.
