WHEATON ARTS PARADE PYRAMIDS 2026
SURFACE DESIGNS SELECTED
Thanks to the community members who provided their feedback on the proposed designs. Their preferences were considered by the Selection Committee in choosing the three designs pictured below that have been submitted to the Maryland State Arts Council (MSAC) for project funding. The project is slated to begin in March.
LAURA-LEIGH PALMER
ARTIST’S CONCEPT: "The World Laughs in Flowers celebrates the rich flora and fauna native to this region of Maryland. Featured animals include the Baltimore Checkerspot butterfly, Luna moth, Hummingbird moth, Monarch butterfly, and the Diamondback terrapin. The depicted plant life includes Black-eyed Susans, Butterflyweed, Woodferns, Blue Flags, and Wild Columbine. These images appear across three panels, each set against a different background color to represent the progression of a day—after all, a Luna moth is most at home against a dark night sky. This theme complements the parks and recreation spaces of the Wheaton area, honoring the natural beauty of the region."
Laura-Leigh Palmer is owner of asap graphics plus LLC – interiors360 (a boutique marketing firm for businesses and organizations.) She also is the Arts Volunteer Coordinator for "So What Else" a nonprofit that supports after school programs and food security for people in the Montgomery County, Baltimore and Anacostia areas where she designs murals to be executed with the help of volunteers.
JESSE KIRSCH
ARTIST’S CONCEPT: "This design uses a bold palette and simple geometric forms and pattern to create something modern, engaging, and unexpected within an urban environment. The shapes function like modern-day petroglyphs. They are intentionally open-ended, inviting interpretation rather than delivering a fixed message. The work is meant to spark curiosity, allowing each viewer to project their own meaning onto the symbols and colors they encounter."
Jesse Kirsch is owner and creative director of No Plan in Takoma Park, MD since 2019. His responsibilities include: day-to-day operations, project management, business development, creative direction, graphic design, and production design. He specializes in conceptual development, naming, full-service graphic design and branding, public art, murals, hand-painted signage, and custom letterpress art prints and cards.
PEIJISAN ART
ARTIST’S CONCEPT: "Wheaton Wings highlights 3 whimsically winged creatures who are integral parts of our local ecosystem and share a color palette that seems almost too bright and beautiful to be real. The design highlights the Bumble Bee, the Rosy Maple Moth and the Goldfinch that are native to Maryland and that one may be lucky to encounter in the landscape of Wheaton. If people need a reminder of the natural beauty in the midst of the urban district, they need only walk around my artwork. I chose these colorful unsung heroes because while they are small in size they are essential to pollination and seed dispersal for local plants, showing how important these relationships are in nature."
Paige Friedeman aka Peijisan Art has been a professional visual, community and public artist for more than 20 years. She has created public artwork with grant awards from both MSAC and AHCMC and has created murals for Brookside Gardens (Montgomery Parks), SWBID, the National Cherry Blossom Festival and more.
SEMI-FINALISTS
Although their designs were not selected for the project, these local artists received a commission and their work was well received by the community. You can see one of Lilian Blom's murals at the Westfield Shopping Center near the entrance to Costco parking. Some of Dinah Myers-Shroeder's artwork can be seen on the windows of the MNCPPC Headquarters on Reedie Dr.
DINAH MYERS-SCHROEDER
LILIANE BLOM
BACKGROUND
The project has two phases: planning and implementation. The planning phase is fully funded with a grant from the Maryland State Arts Council “Public Art Across Maryland Program.” Five applicants were selected to receive a commission of $250 each to prepare their original design. From among these semi-finalists' renderings, the three pictured above were selected to be painted on a tetrahedron. The tetrahedra will be fabricated with a welded aluminum frame and PVC surface that is able to withstand outdoor display. These three artists received an additional $250 for submitting the winning designs. The application for project funding was submitted to MSAC on December 12. This completed the planning phase of the project.