NIAGARA FALLS, N.Y. — The Niagara Falls National Heritage Area has been working hard to bring public art back into the city's streets, and this time its newest project features a fun twist.
We have shared some of the groups recent colorful wall murals, but this time they have taken their downtown revitalization project new heights.
Filling the windows of what was once the Jenss Department Store on Main Street will live many portraits done by artist Polly King. She was greatly known for her great diversity depicted in her art and made many works centered around Niagara Falls, where she spent most of her adult life.
The portraits featured on the windows are just 184 of the over 400 portraits Polly King created of local Niagara Falls people, many of which were women who shaped the history of Niagara Falls.
Window portraits will face both Main and Division streets on the Jenss Building for people to view. Once finished with the project, the group will have a website link where people can learn who each window is, and the history behind the painting.
Dr. Robin King, granddaughter of Polly, said, “These portraits of women in Niagara Falls from the 1940s through the 1970s chronicle a piece of the social history of our city during its days of economic vibrancy. This installation is a great opportunity to take an under-utilized old building and bring it to life with Polly’s portraits of women from the area done when this building was a major destination on Main Street.
The Heritage Area started what is know as the Main Street Murals Project in 2019 to create powerful murals in the community and tell the story of Niagara Falls with a message of freedom. It was made possible by a grant from the New York State Health Foundation.
“In creating these timeless portraits of women, Polly gave us an indelible gift that builds an intersection between place and people. Each of the women featured was a part of Niagara Falls and has a story that is embedded in their own talent, dreams and life,” shared Sara Capen, Executive Director of the Niagara Falls National Heritage Area. “By connecting them to the iconic Jenss building, a place filled with memory and stories, this project breathes life into Main Street and gives us a peek into the past while posing a question about its future. What does a vibrant and revitalized Main Street look like? Imagine the possibilities.”