Passengers flying out of McKellar-Sipes Regional Airport in Jackson, Tennessee, will get a special look at the latest “Everywhere You Look, UT” mural completed this week.
This 100-foot-wide mural—designed to be seen from the air rather than a major roadway—uses the barn roof at the University of Tennessee Institute of Agriculture’s West Tennessee AgResearch and Education Center.
Director Scott Stewart came up with the idea.
“We get a lot of visitors at the center, but we don’t have a location where you could see anything from the road,” said Stewart. “So, I picked a candidate building that is visible from the flyway at the Jackson Airport and we’ll get some air traffic, but it’s also going to be visible from the ground level, too.”
About 10,000 people fly in and out of McKellar-Sipes Regional Airport yearly. Additionally, about 8,000 people visit the center each year.
Madison County makes mural No. 48 in the UT System’s “Everywhere You Look, UT” mural campaign.
The West Tennessee AgResearch and Education Center has represented UT in West Tennessee since 1907 and is the oldest AgResearch Center in the UT System, outside of the Knoxville location. The center conducts research, hosts field days, educates farmers and showcases beautiful, expansive gardens that are open to the public.
“There’s been lots of studies looking at the value of AgResearch and Extension programs to the communities,” said Stewart. “You get about $7 out of every $1 of investment into ag programs.”
Since launching in 2018, the “Everywhere You Look, UT” campaign includes murals in 44 counties across the state. The UT System has a goal of painting a mural in each of Tennessee’s 95 counties by 2030. Costs of the first mural in each county are covered by the University.
To learn more about the mural in Madison County or to submit a location for consideration, visit the campaign website.
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