A collage of second semester projects completed by DMPS high school art students is now on indefinite display thanks to a longstanding Northside business that made them an offer they couldn’t refuse.

Capital Landscaping is in the business of property improvement and enhancement. Since the company moved into its current premises near North High School in 2016, one facade of the building came to be seen as a blank canvas.

“We got the idea to cover the garage bays with a series of murals,” said project coordinator Matt Glaser, whose father Phil established Capital Landscaping in 1998. “So we reached out to area high schools to see if they’d be interested in doing something for us around a general theme of Iowa landscapes and wildlife.”

North, Scavo, East, Lincoln and Roosevelt all rose to the bait of a commission that included the necessary materials and the promise of what amounts to a public exhibition. Dowling and Saydel also participated.

All of the 8’x8’ panels have been installed at 113 E. Sheridan and treated to gird them for what Glaser envisions as a year round part of the company’s footprint.

“They look great and they should last at least several years,” he said. “If and when they wear out, maybe we can go back to the schools at that time and spruce them up or do it all over again.”

Whenever that time comes there are certain to be plenty more budding artists where these came from, eager for patrons and opportunities.