SCRANTON, Pa. — With each brush stroke and spray of paint, a mural at the end of the Biden Expressway in Scranton is taking shape.
Los Angeles artist John Park was commissioned to paint the large-scale mural, transforming both sides of the concrete retaining wall in Scranton to represent the four seasons of northeast Pennsylvania.
"I basically just thought about different activities and things that people could do around here that also encompasses those seasons (and) just kind of build a narrative around them," Park said.
Park credits his fiancée Julie Hunter as his muse. Hunter grew up in Lackawanna County and graduated from Abington Heights in 2005. Hunter says she's always admired other murals in the county.
"I'm always trying to find more reasons to come back home. And we love painting all over, so it was a very symbiotic connection," said Hunter.
Currently, they are working on the wall that represents summer and fall activities. A girl swimming, a fisherman, and a train are already visible.
"The rest of the wall, there's going to be a football player, and then kids running through a pumpkin patch, and then fall leaves. And on the other side is going to be skiers and some local flora and fauna possibly," Park said.
"Lake swimming, number one; I loved going up to the 'Paupack when I was young and swimming in the water. I never got too into fishing, but know plenty of fishermen. There's a lot of fun activities," Hunter said.
So far, the response from the community has been positive.
"We get nice coffee and snack drop-offs and honks and waves. We're just really embracing the local community again and having fun with all the positive shout-outs we get," Hunter added.
Park and Hunter will take a break over the winter and plan to resume painting on the other wall in May.