The history of Albion looms large on the main floor of the Mudd building in the form of a mural designed by nationally known Michigan artist Michael Peck.
The panels of this triptych depict the farm families who settled the Albion area; the beginnings of industry, culminating in the monumental figure of the Molder; and the cultural milieu in which Albion College, represented by Dickie Hall (now part of the Kellogg Center), plays an important part. To appreciate the rich detail of the mural, read the framed description that accompanies it.
After graduating from Marshall High School, Michael Peck attended Albion College, majoring in Anthropology and Theatre. His work as a decorative painter has won him prestigious private commissions, and his creative team, comprised of Michigan artists, has executed commissions for world-class hotels such as The Plaza in New York City and The Breakers in Palm Beach, Florida.
His artistic credentials made Peck a natural choice to restore murals and paint an original tompe l’oeil panel for the Honolulu House in Marshall. Other local examples of his work can be seen at Marshall’s Oaklawn Hospital and Architecture Plus Design in Battle Creek.
Albion’s mural was commissioned by Albion’s Downtown Development Authority, Economic Development
Corporation, and Chamber of Commerce, with support from the Arts and Industry Council, the W.K.
Kellogg Foundation, the Albion Community Foundation, Semco Energy, and private donors.
The mural will be on display in the college library at least through the fall semester. Take some time to “read” this graphic history of our community!