ALTON - On Saturday, January 11 from 2:00 – 4:00 p.m., the public is invited to join Alton Main Street at an unveiling party for an exciting new feature of Alton’s newest mural, and watch Miles Davis come to life on the wall through augmented reality! The event will take place inside the building that the mural is painted on, Hiram’s Bar located at 219 W. 3rd Street. Attendees can warm up with refreshments, meet the artist, and visit with fellow public art lovers and jazz enthusiasts.
In anticipation of the upcoming 100th birthday celebration of Miles Dewey Davis, one of the most influential and acclaimed figures in the history of jazz and 20th-century music who was born in Alton, Illinois on May 26th, 1926, a mural featuring his image was completed in October by St. Louis-based artist Peat "Eyez" Wollaeger. Eyez has commemorated many notable individuals through their murals around the country and is known globally for their colorful stencil portraits and large scale murals. They are now making a name for themselves as a trailblazer in using augmented reality as a medium for artistic purposes. Augmented reality is a way to mix digital content with the real world, adding animation and sound to physical art using groundbreaking technology for a truly immersive experience.
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By downloading the Artivive app and viewing the mural through your phone screen, the 12’ x 12’ portrait of Miles Davis on the wall will perform So What from the Kind of Blue album as part of a video that commemorates Alton's hometown hero. The augmented reality will be live through the end of 2026 through a licensing agreement with Sony Music which owns the publishing rights to Davis’s illustrious body of work.
Alton Main Street is a non-profit organization dedicated to preserving and promoting historic Downtown Alton through an array of economic and community development activities. Commissioning public art projects which illustrate the identity of the community is an important part of how the group achieves its mission.
The new mural titled “Eyez on Milez” is just one of a growing list of public art installations across Downtown Alton. Alton Main Street expresses gratitude to Downtown resident and property owner Penny Schmidt for her generous donation in support of its mission to beautify and animate through public art which made this project possible. To make your tax-deductible contribution which will help expand the public art program in Downtown Alton, please contact info@altonmainstreet.org.
A directory of 20 murals and sculptures found in and around the Downtown district can be found at: www.DowntownAlton.com/PublicArt. The website features a map as well as artist statements, photos, and descriptions of how each work of art came to be. Follow the artist’s future endeavors on Instagram @Eyez, and to find signature Eyez merchandise, visit www.eyezbrand.com.
Alton Main Street – engaging our community in the continued renewal of our historic downtown district and Mississippi River heritage by cultivating an attractive center of economic and social activity.
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