The first section of the Parkersburg floodwall mural at Point Park was completed ahead of schedule. (Photo by Evan Bevins)

PARKERSBURG — Artist Christopher Santer gave himself a month to complete the first phase of the Parkersburg Floodwall Mural Project.

It took about two weeks, but that’s not including all the preparation.

“It was more than the two weeks that I was here painting,” the Parkersburg native said Sunday during a fundraiser for the next phase of the project.

Santer did a scale illustration of the image, which starts with the sheet music to John Denver’s “Country Roads,” then transitions to West Virginia’s mountain vistas and downtown Parkersburg’s distinctive railroad bridge. Then he utilized a grid system to allow the smaller image to be transferred onto the canvas of the floodwall itself.

The project started in mid-July with the central mountain section, which Santer experimented for on a 10-by-20-foot wall in Minnesota, where he makes his home.

From left, Parkersburg resident A.B. Stump, his wife Alyssa Mennillo, her sister Ashley Bartenschlag of Morgantown and Parkersburg High School art teacher Emma Romanowski converse during a fundraiser for the Parkersburg Floodwall Mural Project Sunday at the Blennerhassett Hotel. Behind them is a scale illustration of the full mural. (Photo by Evan Bevins)

“So much of it was about getting that transition of mist to mountain,” he said.

The 20-by-160-foot section recently sprang to vibrant life with the help of area art teachers and students, as well as fellow artist and West Virginia native Paul Mullins.

Parkersburg High School art teacher Emma Romanowski credited Santer’s preparation and organization with the success of the mural so far.

“It’s incredible,” she said. “Involving that many people can get really messy, and it didn’t.”

There were concerns at one point the COVID-19 pandemic might delay the start of the mural, but now, project director Edward Escandon believes they’re on the verge of being able to complete the other segments next summer.

“I think the primary reason for us to have this event is … to celebrate the progress that we’ve made,” he said Sunday.

About 60 people attended the “Sunday FUND-ay” event in the tent on the patio at the Blennerhassett Hotel, Escandon said. Tickets of $125 provided admission, cocktails and hors d’oeuvres, as well as an opportunity to meet Santer. The money will go toward the project, with finances almost to the point that the next phase can start in the summer of 2022, Escandon said.

Among those attending was Parkersburg resident Alyssa Mennillo, who recalled walking at Point Park when Santer and company were working on the first section.

“I was there two days later and it looked like they had almost finished,” she said. “I love seeing the arts flourishing downtown. … It’s a great advertisement for Parkersburg as you’re coming across the bridge.”

The railroad bridge will provide a frame for other images specific to the history of Parkersburg, to be illustrated by other artists, Escandon said. He invites members of the community to join in the conversation about what those components will look like.

More information about the project can be found online at parkersburgflood.org and the project’s Facebook page.

Evan Bevins can be reached at ebevins@newsandsentinel.com.