The Wrangell Sentinel

Mural Is Installed in Post Office

With the completion of the installation of its handsome mural this week Wrangell may now boast of one of the most beautiful post offices in Alaska, or anywhere else. The work was done under the direction of Arnold Prusi and is attracting favorable comment from all sides. The oil painting is fourteen feet by eight feet and completely fills the wall from the wainscoting to the ceiling with a space cut out for the postmaster's door. At the bottom of the main mural are two smaller strips depicting Alaskan Indian insignia, enhancing the authenticity and beauty of the subject. The mural, painted by Marianne Appel and Austin Mecklem through the Section of Fine Arts of the Public Buildings administration, is a composite picture of various towns in Alaska, with traces easily distinguishable of Juneau, Petersburg and Wrangell. Seen in the foreground are totem poles, busy fishermen, evergreen trees, wildlife, and a placid bay stretches into the distance, dotted with islands. On the right are the docks, canneries and a busy little town, over which towers a typical Alaskan mountain. A raincloud may be seen discharging its contents over the harbor, and far in the distance is a glittering glacier, reminiscent of Taku. The mural, which was painted by Miss Appel and Mr. Mecklem at Woodstock, New York, was crated and arrived here in good order last December, when it was discovered that the painting, through an unavoidable error, lacked about 12 inches of meeting the specifications. This was promptly rectified by the addition of the two panels at the bottom, technically known as predella, and often used in wall painting. The entire painting has been installed with great skill by Mr. Prusi from specifications approved by the Section of Fine Arts. At this time it might be well to give out a warning that the mural is the property of the Post Office Department, and anyone caught defacing it is subject to a stiff fine and imprisonment.