SaddleBrooke Pottery Club member Harriet Hason puts the finishing details on a desert scene mural prior to kiln firing the ceramic tiles. The mural is the club’s community service project for Mountain Vista School in Oracle.
A section of the mural to be placed at the entrance to Mountain Vista School in Oracle depicts the animals and plants in the Sonoran Desert.
Dan Stebbins
The SaddleBrooke Pottery Club has created a mural of a panoramic desert scene on ceramic tiles as a community service project for Mountain Vista School in Oracle. The mural depicts the flora, fauna and topography of the Oracle area.
At an expansive 99” x 28” the mural is composed of nearly 100 hand-painted 6”x 6” tiles. The framed mural will be installed at the entrance to the school at 2618 W. El Paseo. A dedication is set for 9:30 a.m. on Thursday, May 12. The public is invited.
Using colored glazes, a team of SaddleBrooke Pottery Club artists illustrated the desert scene with a cougar (the school mascot), coyotes, quail, ground squirrels, desert tortoises, hawks, roadrunners and Big Horn sheep. Plant varieties depicted include cacti and agaves. A representation of the Santa Catalina Mountains serves as the background while tiles at the bottom of the mural contain words of inspiration for the students, reflecting the school’s values and expectations.
“Working with Mountain Vista School has been a great way for us to give something back to the community,” said SaddleBrooke Pottery Club President Steve Law.
The project was launched last summer to replace a severely weatherworn mosaic near the entrance to the kindergarten through eighth grade school. Pottery Club member Jeri Taylor, who is also a member of the Oracle School Board, suggested the undertaking to the club. The club approved funding last fall.
Harriet Hason, Jan Stebbins and Janice Waller designed the mural. Esther Olson, Harriet Hason and Kathleen Thompson transferred the final design to the tiles in February with technical support from Jerry Dohms.
After extensive planning, Ellen Perkins, Jeanne Rudolph, Jan Stebbins and Harriet Hason commenced to paint the desert scene with glazes and kiln fire the tiles.
“The Pottery Club members’ labor of love and commitment to the creation of this beautiful mural for the Mountain Vista School community is a shining example of the wonderful support the Mountain Vista school children enjoy,” said Oracle School Board Member Linda Lyon.
School officials expect the mural to be a source of pride for the school’s 450 students as well as the faculty, staff and community.
Oracle resident Michael Hawkins and school district volunteers will set the tiles and mount the mural at the school.