Towering imagery is slowly emerging on a sliver of Sterling, Illinois’s horizon.
Work started in September 2018 etching onto surface what will be displayed across three empty silos standings and five stories tall.
Owned by resident Doctor Edward Miles, his private commission for art will have a lasting impact on the public in Sterling and Rock Falls.
His idea for the project really started blooming in April.
It is a massive work in progress as petals and stems take shape into bringing together a bouquet of flowers on these idle silos.
Owner of Anois Studios Annie Hermes said, “We as humans use flowers to communicate messages that we can’t really articulate.”
Annie Hermes has a canvas that’s hard to miss.
Hermes said, “The uniqueness sort of speaks for itself, you know. The sheer size most of all.”
While these large grey cement cylinders might have detractors.
“I understand how some community members feel that they’re an eyesore,” Hermes told Local Four News.
For Hermes, her largest commission is also connecting her to a sight that has powerful meaning.
Hermes said, “A lot of my uncles and my grandpa farmed and I just have sort of a love for rural spaces, and I just love that this rural space is in town.”
To complete this work, the Dixon, Illinois-based artist takes to soaring over the city, and the best way of the progress is to view it from afar.
And once all the paint is applied, it will add a bit a brightness across this river community’s skyline.
Hermes said, “Something so large that visual effects the feel of both cities.”
It’s allowing Hermes to blend private and public art worlds and taking the vision of the silo’s owner Dr. Ed Miles and helping him give back to his home.
Hermes said, “Dr. Miles approach was very community-minded and community oriented.”
Hermes said while the final product might be a treasure for the eyes, there’s one canvas where she’s hoping to leave a blank slate, and it’s how people feel when it catches their eyes.
“[Flowers are] a wonderful symbol of growth and communication, so it is my hope that they evoke feeling. What that feeling is, is just a myriad of undetermined.”
There is no timetable for when this project will get finished because this work is so dependent on the weather.
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