Graffiti News

A striped tree and a winged heart are planned for two walls

Ally Walker will paint two large-scale murals on separate exterior walls of the Whitlock Building in downtown Syracuse. According to Katrina Tulloch’s October 2, 2026 report for syracuse.com, the building stands at 476 South Salina Street, next to the Salt City Market parking lot.

One mural will depict a large tree with colorful stripes; the other will feature a large heart with wings. Walker was scheduled to spend nine days on installation, with the murals set to debut later in October 2026. The project will add two outdoor works to the city’s growing collection of public art.

The budget includes a family arts and crafts station

Ryan Goodfellow, owner of Whitlock Partners, approved the installation in August, syracuse.com reported. The project’s $11,450 budget covers artist fees, wall preparation, supplies and community engagement activities.

For the community component, families will be able to make their own wooden heart designs at an arts and crafts station. The activity takes its inspiration from the idea of the “heart of downtown.” A heart will thus appear both as a large image on the building and as the starting point for the families’ creations. The plan brings a hands-on activity into a project centered on painted exterior walls.

Walker wants murals to draw people toward overlooked places

Walker wants her art to prompt a second look at places people usually overlook, then encourage a closer visit. In the artist statement quoted by syracuse.com, she described murals as a way to build a sense of community and create a backdrop for social life.

She also spoke of engaging patrons, helping local economic activity, easing tension and bringing more color to an area. Her account connects the visual change made by a mural with the people who spend time around it. At the Whitlock Building, the planned family activity puts participation alongside the two wall paintings.

Her portfolio spans hospitals, markets and the Whitlock interior

Walker has painted murals in Syracuse for more than 20 years. According to syracuse.com, she earned a bachelor’s degree in art and graphic design from SUNY Plattsburgh. Her portfolio includes 86 murals at Upstate University Hospital facilities, along with work at Crouse Hospital and Golisano Children’s Hospital.

Her public-art installations include work for Armory Square, the CNY Regional Market and the New York State Fair. She also painted the colorful house mural on Coleridge Avenue in Tipperary Hill.

The new commission returns Walker to a building where she has already worked: her earlier Whitlock projects include a 40-foot lobby mural and five interior murals. The proposed exterior paintings extend that connection to two outside walls.

Nearby market art offers a contrasting subject

Audra Linsner’s Salt City Market mural is close to the planned installation. Syracuse.com reported that it was completed in 2022 and depicts the variety of cuisine provided by the market’s chefs. Food imagery will be a nearby counterpart to Walker’s tree and winged heart.

For mural followers, a future visit could focus on how each design occupies its wall, from the overall silhouette to the stripes and wings. A wide photograph and a detail view would capture those different scales. The map can help organize nearby mural locations.

Source: syracuse.com, October 2, 2026.