Members of the Vision Downtown Lampasas! Art Committee in front of the "Generations" mural include, from left, Marilyn Clary, Sue Ellen Bumpus, Susan Cornwell, Katherine Mezger, Dianna Hodges, Donna Clark and T.J. Mabrey. The Vision Downtown Lampasas!Art Committee gathered recently to celebrate the completion of the mural "Generations" on the north side of Lampasas Hardware and Contractor Supply (corner of Second and Western streets).

Planning began for the mural in December 2008, a month after VDL! celebrated the completion of its first mural "Boot Round-up" on Jerry Goodson's Surveyors building (on Western Street between Third and Fourth streets).

The images used to create "Generations" were businesses once housed in the Lampasas Hardware building. The final image was selected in January 2009, and digitized for transfer on the wall using a computer and projector at night.

Bad weather delayed completion of a new sidewalk along the wall, postponing painting that was to begin in February to May.

But once the project got started, it moved along quickly.

The first section, a 19th-century image of the Texas Trading Company, was finished in eight days.

The second section, including references to Love Bros. Motor Co., Western Auto, a gas station and the current owner and building tenant Johnny Wade, was completed by the end of May.

Painting on the final section depicting Lampasas Bowl was delayed a month while a new metal door was fabricated, installed, primed and painted. Once painting began again, the mural was completed on July 14, in a record number of painting days: 22 from start to finish.

One reason for the speedy work was that more than 50 volunteers signed up to help paint the mural, com- pared to about 15 for the first work of art.

Volunteers included a group of employees from First Texas Bank in Lampasas, retired teachers, art historians, stay-at-home moms and dads, kids (as young as 8) and retirees of 80, city parks workers and descendants of owners of the businesses depicted in the mural.

VDL! designed the mural as a paint-by-number project to allow any member of the community to participate, regardless of artistic skills.

As many as 15 people painted at one time. "The unintended and surprising consequences of the gathering of painters were the wonderful, firsthand stories that were shared about earlier times in Lampasas," according to a VDL committee member.

Because of that, an oral history project will be launched during the upcoming celebration of the mural's completion on Aug. 27 at 6:30 p.m. at the mural site.

A demo tape will be played at the celebration featuring past business owners and people sharing memories of the building and activities there.

There will be music commemorating each decade represented in the mural, along with lemonade, iced tea and small snacks.

Music will be provided by Derek Groves and other musicians, and Keystone Square Museum will be open during the event. Admission is free, and the public is invited.

In the fall, Keystone Square Museum will work with Dealey Campbell, an educator with the Dallas Historical Society, to record memories related to the building and the corner lot. Sign-up will be available during the celebration.