Audio Tour Transcript
Introduction
My name is Darren Harbour, also known as Darren The Inspirer, and I am a Disability and Inclusion Specialist. I will be your Clifton multi-sensory art wall audio tour guide.
This project is a culmination of the collaboration between three artists and long-time residents of Clifton: Liz Richter, Kristen Falkirk, and me.
I am a theatre and performing artist, as well as the founder of Imagine Blind Players.Through my work, I promote authentic inclusion, create reputable art for all artists, and challenge the limitations uniformly placed on people with disabilities.
As a disability inclusion specialist, I was hired as a consultant to ensure the accessibility of this mural wall. I have tactically reviewed the braille, clay model images that are illustrative to the touch, guided the artist on which colors and large images would be helpful to the visually impaired, and advised on the shape of architecture that would aid in orientation and mobility for white cane and service dog users.
This monumental multi-sensory art mural wall has been in the making for several years. History will be made as this is a first-of-its-kind event in Kentucky. The vision of lead artist, Liz Richter, is for this wall to tell a timeline of Frankfort Avenue and its pedestrians. The wall is located on the grounds of Bank Commons off State Street. The diversity of Frankfort Avenue is on full display, with not only this amazing art wall but also the community surrounding it.
I am here to guide you through this multi-sensory experience. I encourage you to use your imagination as you listen to me describe the features of this wall. You are also encouraged to reach out and touch the wall as I lead you through the story the wall tells. If you are listening from home, imagine yourself in a park along Frankfort Avenue on a warm spring day.
The Structure and Theme
The structure is a 46-foot-long curved wall that wraps inward towards its center. The wall is low on either end, at 2 feet from the ground and rising to almost 7 feet at the center of the most inward focal point of the wall, and if you stand in the right spot within the middle of the curve, it creates an acoustic echo. The entire wall is covered in
handmade ceramic tiles, many of which are carved into animals, people, buildings, and flowers.
The installation tells a story from left to right, through the history of Clifton, using a road to demonstrate the passage of time. Landmark architectural buildings along Frankfort Avenue spring up like wildflowers along the road. Richter chose each botanical with symbolism to represent organic growth and the nourishing environment of the Clifton neighborhood.
Next to each large building is a separate tile that is leaf-shaped, and this tile has the name of that building carved in Braille. Scattered throughout the piece are smaller florals chosen for their symbology: Marigold equals Creativity. Daffodils equals New Beginnings. Dandelion equals Growth. Daisy equals Fun. Coneflower equals Health.
There is also a theme of transportation and mobility: A road and railroad track weave their way across the entirety of the structure, and eras of time change as figures move left to right across the wall. The road begins with indigenous people and buffalo, which then transforms to cobblestone streets with horses and carts, and ends with a modern-era TARC bus. Trains, trucks, and pedestrians with their pets travel back and forth along the design, illustrating the importance of Frankfort Avenue as a historic turnpike.
Richter chose not to represent the figures or objects of Clifton in a traditional color scheme, but in bright, candy-coated glazes that emphasize the fantastical history and romance of the neighborhood. The colors are grounded in a lovely chocolate grout, a decision based on a suggestion of mine, to create high contrast with the bright colors while still connecting to the park’s natural surroundings.
The side of the wall facing the road is a simple, flat facade of hand-cut and glazed penny tiles in dark blue that spell out “CLIFTON.” The tiles are set in a repeated pattern of cool light shades of blue, such as robin’s egg, periwinkle, and cornflower blue, which are meant to emulate limestone. A sunset in warm colors is placed under the letters. It
was also a collaboration between Richter and Falkirk, and was inspired by the iconic sunset over the railroad tracks that cross Frankfort Avenue.
Traveling Through Time - Introduction to the Narrative
The imagery and stories of Clifton depicted in this art installation are just a few of the landmarks that inspired the artists. There are so many wonderful historic places and stories involving Clifton that not all of them can be represented.
The artists hope you will explore the neighborhood and learn more about other historic places within this neighborhood from the Clifton Community Council and the American Printing House for the Blind Museum.
Detailed description of images and story, left to right
A family of indigenous people row a canoe on Beargrass Creek. A mother holds a small child in the canoe and rows with one hand, while a father rows in the back of the canoe. They have long, flowing hair.
Wildflowers can be found scattered throughout the green grassy circular tiles across the installation, each with its own wish or meaning.
- Red-orange marigold for creativity
- yellow-green daffodils for new beginnings
- orange and yellow dandelion for growth
- violet coneflower for health.
Two buffalo graze on green, rolling hills. Yellow and orange sunflowers, an ancient indigenous crop grown in this region, sprout up in the grass—soft waves of water crest under a wooden bridge over Beargrass Creek. Catfish swim in the swift waters and along the shore. A man fishes on the creek banks with a spear.
Frankfort Avenue began its history as a buffalo trace and the natural path of the indigenous people who called this region home. The Louisville region, including Clifton, was the ancestral home of the Eastern Band of the Cherokee, the Osage Nation, and the Shawnee. Kentucky is home to indigenous cultures dating back thousands of years.
A historic home is the first of eight iconic buildings featured within this design. The home is the first known colonial settlement in the area, the mansion of Colonel Joshua Bowles, and is now long gone. It is a three-story mansion with a large iron fence surrounding it. Richter depicts it in a pink glaze; lavender and light green forget-me-not blooms frame the iron fencing. It is said that Colonel Bowles looked out from the top of the hill at the steep rock formations towards what is now Brownsboro Road. That view was the inspiration for the name, “Clifton.” Richter discovered the lore of the mansion as she was researching for this project, and later realized her little bungalow home of almost ten years was likely on the homestead of Colonel Bowles.
Below the Bowles mansion, the road that leads to the bridge splits into a red-orange cobblestone path and a brown railroad track. The railroad track descends to the bottom of the wall, and the cobblestone road stays central across the design, under the plants and buildings.
A yellow horse hauls an orange cart and wagon with pink pigs in the back. One pig
peeks out of the fencing, as if crying, “Help!” On the cart, a gentleman farmer is driving towards Butchertown. The meatpacking district produced many jobs for the working class who began settling in the Clifton area in the 1800s.
To the right of the horse and cart, a man with a dog guide walks towards the center of the wall where the School for the Blind is located. He is wearing all blue and has a hat on. The dog is in a harness, and both walk confidently.
Growing up on the road are two well-known buildings, the Hilltop Theatre and the Silver Dollar Firehouse. Both of these buildings are near the corner of Frankfort Avenue and Pope Street.
The Hilltop Theatre is depicted growing out of purple coneflowers with orange centers and lime green leaves, and is glazed in a creamy white. Symbolizing health, coneflowers were included by Richter to represent a hope that the neighborhood’s historic buildings and local businesses would remain vibrant and resilient.
The Silver Dollar Firehouse is depicted with the original watchtower that was later removed. This well-loved and recognized Clifton Gothic Revival building was built in 1890. Richter sculpted it blooming out of a bright red and pink-petaled wild rose. The building is glazed in coral, with creamy white accents on the doors and windows. Large, green rose leaves and a bud are growing underneath the blooming rose.
A bright red historic 1800s train engine with four cars follows along the bottom railroad track. The engine has wheels with spokes like a wagon. Each car carries different cargo. There are two box cars, a car stacked with yellow hay bales and a lavender passenger car in the back. The passenger car has two doors and four windows. Each train has three small blue wheels connecting it to the track.
Along the cobblestoned Frankfort Avenue, another cart and horse is facing Crescent Hill. The brown horse pulling a pink cart full of coral-colored bourbon barrels has stopped to get a drink from a horse trough. Richter stumbled across this iron trough at the corner of Frankfort and Vernon Avenue on a walk. The driver, dressed in yellow and orange, holds the reins and waits patiently for his horse. He is shaded by the massive goldenrod plant at the center of the curved wall, whose stalks spring up from the road.
The sprawling goldenrod plant fills the focal point and height of the installation. Army green stalks with lighter green leaves weave their way upward toward the sky. Circular discs containing smaller flowers in lime green and orange are supported by coral, teardrop-shaped buds.
Goldenrod is the state flower and a symbol of growth and encouragement. Five branches of goldenrod spread out to contain three buildings, and three scenes related to the Kentucky School for the Blind.
The center stalk of the goldenrod contains the massive relief sculpture of the original School for the Blind building, built in 1855 on what was then called Frankfort Turnpike Road. It was demolished in the 1960s, but the original cupola Richter sculpted at the top of the dome is still viewable on the grounds of KSB. The building was a five-story structure in the Greek Revival style, with an entrance portico, a large copper dome, and a small dome on either side, each with a cupola above it. Richter glazed the KSB building in creamy white with a green dome, similar to what she found in historic photos and illustrations. This building was used as a hospital during the Civil War.
The buildings on either side, growing from the same center stalk of goldenrods, tell additional stories about the long history of the Kentucky School for the Blind’s impact on the Clifton community.
To the left of KSB is the first American Printing House for the Blind building, and to the right, the Colored School for the Blind, established in 1884 and located on Haldeman Avenue. No longer standing, the Colored School for the Blind merged with KSB in 1955. The American Printing House for the Blind began operating in the basement of the school before building a separate facility. The first book was printed there in 1869. Since that time, APH has led the way in innovative educational technology for the blind and visually impaired. While touring APH, Richter was inspired by the sculptural techniques used to create texture and movement. The APH brick building is depicted in a sunny yellow with white trim. The Colored School for the Blind is glazed orange-red and depicts large arched windows. Richter visited an archeological dig happening at the site where this building used to be.
Under the three buildings growing out of the goldenrod, Richter and Harbour decided to represent the diverse talents of the KSB students in figures inspired by historic photos. The lower, left stalk of goldenrod contains a scene of six cheerleaders, in a united cheer, springing up from the goldenrod blossoms. A center stem contains a figure playing the violin, representing the well-known bluegrass fiddle player, Michael Cleveland, a former student at KSB. To the right of him, two student wrestlers shake hands before a competition. Harbour himself competed in KSB’s wrestling program.
Along the brick road, to the right of the goldenrod stalks, is a small pylon-shaped water fountain, recognizable to locals as the fountain in Bingham Park. Bingham Park was designed by the Olmsted brothers in 1915 and rests in a valley below Coral Avenue. A small toddler wearing swim trunks runs underneath the fountain. Richter, like many young Clifton families for generations, walked her child many times to Bingham Park to swing, slide, and play in the fountain.
The grounds of Banks Commons, where the installation resides, used to also be a playground of Benjamin Franklin Elementary School. Richter chose to depict children moving and playing throughout this work to pay homage to those wonderful memories of play.
To the right of the water fountain, an older gentleman in a pink suit can be seen walking a Labrador, glazed in deep blue. This figure, depicted from behind, was inspired by Richter’s neighbor, “Mr. John,” who is seen frequently around Clifton walking his Labrador retriever. Above him, a rooster glazed in orange and coral is perched on the railing at the bottom of long stairs. At the top of the stairs, a matching hen sits on the rail. A Civil War-era cannon and a red, white, and blue American flag are on a ledge at the top of the stairs. Richter sculpted one of her favorite oddities of the Clifton neighborhood, a pedestrian shortcut known as the “Chicken Steps,” which leads from Brownsboro Road up to Vernon Avenue.
At the top of the stairs on Vernon is the former location of Fort Elstner, a Union fort constructed in 1864 to defend Louisville during the Civil War, which never saw combat. The fort was strategically situated on top of the cliff that gives the neighborhood its name. Locals believe the name “Chicken Steps” originated when neighbors’ chickens would wander down the slopes and roost on the steps. Richter has been told that neighbors have dug up cannonballs on Vernon Avenue. The history of Kentucky is tucked away in every nook and corner of the Clifton neighborhood, many times overgrown by the current structures and landscape.
Below the “Chicken Steps” is a burst of intricately carved wild dandelions in yellow, orange, and white, with yellow-green leaves. Richter sculpted these to represent a grassy open space on Payne Street near the Clifton Center, which her family nicknamed “Dandelion Hill.”
To the right of the chicken steps and Fort Elstner, a tall, wavy iris plant, is positioned nearly five feet tall in its entirety. Inside this blossom, a symbol of eloquence, rests the building known as the former “Clifton Center.” The Clifton Center is an extension of the historic St. Francis of Rome church, and a former hub of the creative community. This Italian Renaissance-style building with a Spanish tile roof is glazed in pink and coral. On a large violet iris petal below the building, a man resembling local musician Will Oldham is playing an acoustic guitar and singing.
The railroad tracks meet and cross Frankfort Avenue right by St. Francis of Rome, so Richter carved a railroad crossing sign to mark the spot where locals regularly wait for trains to pass through the neighborhood. Walking up to the crossing is a woman and her pup on a leash. Richter modeled this figure from Kristen Falkirk, whose ceramic studio was once located on this block. She is wearing a violet colored apron and her favorite sandals. On the other side of the crossing is a figure Richter modeled after me. I have a full beard and wear a jacket with fringes. I walk confidently, on a straight and narrow path, holding a smartphone in one hand and a white cane in the other.
The road slants upward toward the last building, now a restaurant known as the Irish Rover, formerly Widman’s saloon in the 19th century. The saloon was a watering hole and is still a beloved dining spot. The building is glazed in warm red-orange and yellow, with six windows and seven pillars across the front. It is surrounded by petite hydrangea blossoms (a symbol of nourishment) in pink, with blue centers, large green leaves, and yellow-green stems. This building has an herb and flower bed by Frankfort Avenue that Richter frequently stopped to admire. Frankfort Avenue is known for wonderful culinary locations, and the artists have lovely memories of sharing meals with other artists and friends along Frankfort Avenue.
Below the avenue, a child wearing a helmet, sunglasses, and a backpack rides a red scooter. Nearby, a billy goat and kid climb on periwinkle blue limestone cliffs. The billy goat has long horns, and the kid has short, stubby horns.
“Billy Goat Hill,” now situated along the cliffs adjacent to Interstate 64, was home to a public spring and a pasture where farmers raised over 200 goats. The goats roamed freely on the open meadow around Billy Goat Hill (located in the 1900-2100 blocks of Payne St.). There is an old legend of a goat from Billy Goat Hill, “going to church” at St. Francis of Rome.
As Frankfort Avenue winds on, a historic trolley in green and yellow with large, arched windows rides toward downtown. Many artists and art lovers rode this trolley during “trolley hop” nights to local galleries and restaurants.
Other pedestrians walk along this more narrow part of the installation, including a teenage boy using a white cane, and a self-portrait of Richter and her infant son. Richter sculpted herself, her hair pulled hastily back in a bun, as she took a selfie on her phone, with her sleeping son in the stroller, holding his stuffed animal hedgehog, Ha
A white truck pulls a trailer with five people riding on it. One is in an Easter Bunny costume, and others wear easter hats or bunny ears. They are waving and throwing candy as they ride on the float that is covered with greenery. The Easter Parade is an annual event on Frankfort Avenue. Richter modeled the float off of a family float from 2022 and her art truck, her “studio on wheels.”
Below the road, a modern train travels down the track, followed by an oil car and box cars covered in graffiti. The big, blue engine has “502” carved into the side. The train tracks crossing Frankfort Avenue cause frequent pauses in vehicle traffic. Richter used her break times to appreciate the street art on the modern train cars and study their mural techniques. There is art everywhere!
Other pedestrians traverse throughout the remaining length of Frankfort Avenue, including a mother with her daughter. Both wear glasses and walk towards the Kentucky School for the Blind. The mother uses a white cane. A man pulls his son in a carrier behind his bicycle. A red flag waves from the back as they pedal towards Crescent Hill. They both wear helmets, and a tiny blue and green stuffed animal peeks out of the boy’s orange backpack.
A woman wearing a scarf and a ponytail leads a goat on a leash. Richter designed this figure based on another neighbor, a fiber artist who raises goats and has delighted her neighbors by walking them along Frankfort Avenue. At the end of the road, a creamy white city TARC bus with red and blue details drives away toward Crescent Hill.