Historic Paul Bunyan murals removed ahead of construction

With construction for the first phase of the Memorial Union Reinvestment beginning in early July, movers and arts conservators are working hard to protect Memorial Union’s historic features.

The renowned murals in Memorial Union’s Paul Bunyan Room have been removed from the walls and are stored off-site to protect them from construction vibration. Due to the murals’ fragile nature, the Wisconsin Union enlisted the Midwest Art Conservation Center to assist with de-installing and crating the famous murals.

Artist James Watrous painted the murals depicting the Paul Bunyan legend in 1936. The murals, which Watrous began as a graduate student in 1933, were funded by a federal grant as part of Franklin D. Roosevelt’s New Deal in response to the Great Depression.

The Paul Bunyan Room is included in the first phase of the Memorial Union Reinvestment and closed on June 15, 2012. The room will receive “behind-the-scenes” infrastructure improvements, but its iconic look will largely remain unchanged. The existing flooring and wall murals will remain as-is. Construction for the first phase of the Memorial Union Reinvestment is slated to be completed in June 2014.

The Paul Bunyan murals are not the only items that the Wisconsin Union is protecting during construction. An array of other items, like the celebrated German beer steins in Der Stiftskeller and historic furniture throughout the building, will be saved and preserved during construction.

–Marc Kennedy