Kienitz Creates a Touch of Whimsy for Animal Hospital
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THE TM 911 Franklin Street Weekly Newspaper Michigan City, IN 46360 Volume 20, Number 24 Thursday, June 24, 2004 Kienitz Creates a Touch of Whimsy for Animal Hospital by Paula McHugh Neil Kienitz and Dr. Rex Bailey pose beside the finished mural. The wall in the waiting room of the newly built he has done before, and with satisfying, happy first- Michigan City Animal Hospital is, to coin a vintage time results. phrase, the cat's pajamas. "I read three books about mural painting before I A colorful, whimsical mural that measures 10 feet started the project," Neil explained, adding that it is high and 13 feet wide tends to mellow the anxiety of his "German heritage" that makes him carefully ana- pet owners seeking care for their furry, feathery, or lyze each element of design and then become willing finny members of their households. to experiment on his own. And that was the goal for the mural's creator, Dr. Rex A. Bailey had glimpsed a vision of a por- noted Michigan City artist Neil Kienitz. Now the tion of the present mural when he saw a diving frog local art community knows Neil as a watercolor that Neil had created during the artist's teaching tenure artist, a South Shore poster creator, a children's book for the Kaleidoscope Children's Enrichment pro- illustrator, a creator of numerous award-winning grams at Springfield and Mullen schools. The students paintings. And remember the Michiana Humane were learning storytelling skills. Neil was helping them Society's "Birdhouses on Parade" birdhouse that Neil with illustrating their stories. As Rex planned the expan- created, along with the bidding war for his most pop- sion of his building at 2525 East Michigan Boulevard, ular entry in that 2002 spring fundraiser? Well, Mr. Neil and his artwork came to mind when the vault- Kienitz, never one to remain static, has bent and ed ceiling reception area was in construction. stretched his former artistic boundaries beyond what Kienetz Continued on Page 2 THE Page 2 June 24, 2004 THE 911 Franklin Street • Michigan City, IN 46360 219/879-0088 • FAX 219/879-8070 In Case Of Emergency, Dial e-mail: News/Articles - [email protected] email: Classifieds - [email protected] http://www.bbpnet.com/ PRINTED WITH Published and Printed by TM Trademark of American Soybean Association THE BEACHER BUSINESS PRINTERS Delivered weekly, free of charge to Birch Tree Farms, Duneland Beach, Grand Beach, Hidden 911 Shores, Long Beach, Michiana Shores, Michiana MI and Shoreland Hills. The Beacher is also Subscription Rates delivered to public places in Michigan City, New Buffalo, LaPorte and Sheridan Beach. 1 year $28 6 months $16 3 months $10 1 month $5 Kienetz Continued from Page 1 The two men collaborated, and in January, while construction was still in progress, Neil began his new venture into mural painting. And, in addition to the brushes, easels, pigments, papers, and canvases that are normally staples of the artist's toolbox, his new project meant investing in scaffolding. According to Neil, he found a 12-foot model at a good price online at eBay. Neil's original plan was to compose a scene of cats and dogs playing beach volleyball, with the land- mark Michigan City lighthouse in the background. But he found that plan unworkable. He was not sure how to add the frogs and rabbits and lizards to that first vision. Scrapping his initial idea, Neil chose to At home, Neil arranges the seven long strips---over 500% eliminate the sand and beach and instead focus on the larger than his original composition. rocks and water below the catwalk. As a result, his assortment of animals sing, dance, paint, leap, row, sunbathe, water-ski, fly a kite, and in the case of "Rex the Lion" (who is, of course, king of the animals), hook a building manual on the end of his fishing line. Adding to the challenge of composition was Neil's admis- sion that animals are his "weakest" area (in drawing). He said it was his biggest challenge. The “How The first four 13-feet wide strips have been attached to the wall in to” building preparation for the design transfer. manual is hooked to “Rex the Lion’s” fishing line, seen outside the mural. (Lower right corner. See picture on Page 4.) The newest tool in the artist's toolbox is his 12-foot scaffolding. Neil said he hopes to do more murals in various styles, particularly Art Nouveau. THE June 24, 2004 Page 3 Open ‘til 7 p.m. Evenings www.littlehousefashions.comElegant Apparel for the [email protected] Conscious Woman Women’s Apparel Super Sidewalk Days Sale 25% - 50% Off The transfer of the composition, blown up 516%, is complete, and the work of adding the color has begun. All Summer Separates & Rex the Lion (representing Dr. Rex A. Bailey), and the leaping frog that caught Rex's attention at an elementary school program are the first Dresses! figures completed. Several unidentified people come to watch Neil as he works. Neil painted the scene with acrylics and used materials that would keep the mural as fresh as the day(s) it was done. In this photo, Neil colors in a sunbathing iguana and its bottle of lizard lotion. "I had to keep the style (of the frog) consistent with all the animals," he explained. "The animal anatomy was adapted to human postures." Neil added that he had to analyze what he could—and could not do with each animal that would be part of the mural. When he finished his composition, Neil had it enlarged 516% its original size. That resulted in eight very long strips of paper, tiled and taped to the work area. Once the design transfer was complete, the next step Neil took was to bring out his palette of acrylics Susan Bristol and begin the largest painting he has ever created. Fine line rib tee with grosgrain ribbon lace up The entire process took 250 hours to complete. Started placket. 100% Cotton/Washable. Lots of Colors! in January, Neil put the last touches—his signa- $39 ture—on the painting in May. "This is probably the most enjoyable art project I've Meet Us For Lunch And A Style Show worked on," Neil said. "It was tremendously satisfy- WEDNESDAY, JUNE 23 - HANNAH’S, NEW BUFFALO ing." The self-taught artist is hoping to do more murals in various styles, Art Nouveau in particular. THURSDAY, JUNE 24 - TIPPECANOE PLACE, SOUTH BEND Meanwhile, Neil has put the scaffolding aside tem- Custom Monogramming Available porarily to prepare for the upcoming Lakefront Art 409 Alexander Street LaPorte, IN 326-8602 Festival, followed by the Heart of Art Studio Tour, and On Hwy 35 - 5 Blocks South of Lincolnway other pending projects. Turn Right on Alexander Monday - Friday 9:30 to 7 Saturday 9:30 to 5 Kienetz Continued on Page 4 THE Page 4 June 24, 2004 condominium where the felines will have a picture win- dow view to the flying critters they love so much. We learned that Rex, along with his family, did all the land- scaping around the building. Rex, a Rogers and Purdue graduate, said that he began attending building seminars in 1989 to get ideas about the day in the faraway future that he would expand his hospital. Then, after attending them year after year, he decided to "take the leap and just do it." And Rex, thinking of the future, showed us the roughed-out basement area that can be used as the practice expands and his patient census grows. As we toured, palpable was Rex's enthusiasm for providing the best of care for ailing animals in the most mod- ern of facilities. Neil and his first venture into mural art and Dr. Rex Bailey and his leap into building expanded facil- ities each exemplify a positive, vibrant, and spirited energy that Michigan City can be proud of. Just walk Almost as high as the reception room's clerestory windows, Neil Kienetz into the Michigan City Animal Hospital and feel mural is a focal point for all who walk in the door of the animal hospital. that spirit yourself. Kienetz Continued from Page 3 Michigan City Animal Hospital receptionist Susan Klettke had a bundle of praise for Neil's mural, as have all of the people who have encountered it since the build- ing's opening on March 29. For Neil, the feeling was mutual. "What was most rewarding is the wonderful peo- ple Rex has employed here," Neil said, adding that he appreciated being in such a "pleasant work environ- ment." And in addition to getting our first look at Neil's mural, The Beacher also was given a tour of the building by Dr. Rex himself. Rex took us to the for- mer building just east of the phenomenonally large new hospital facility so we could witness the contrast. And what a difference! The new building is filled with state of the art medical equipment to care for the needs of its (present) 3500 animal patients with plen- ty of room to spare. The former building, currently being Patients' humans might remember the former hospital's cramped remodeled, will add additional services including a cat quarters, which are now being renovated for additional services. The Michigan City Animal Hospital has a new look and freshly updated The new hospital is filled with state of the art medical equipment. facilities next to its former building on Michigan Boulevard. THE June 24, 2004 Page 5 E LIST IPL ING LT S U E M R V I C 6 E OF LAPORTE COUNTY INC.