2021
April 14, 2021, searching for picture opportunities, I happened to pass Fort Monmouth and decided to see what changes took place since it closed 10 years ago.
About a block north of the Patterson Army Hospital (now called The Beacon), I spotted this giant mural and the bright colors attracted me to stop.
It's a work in progress and it is so massive, that the artist had to use special equipment to gain access.
Not the smartest guy with a camera, I didn't get her name, but I will the next time I see her.
April 17, 2021
It's only been 3 days since my first visit and it did rain during that period, so I wasn't sure if there would be any progress. No one was working when I visited.
A view from the other end of the building - yes it's a huge mural.
Looks like a couple of sketches for future work.
The item on the left looks like an art easel, but it's actually an A.C. Power panel.
April 22, 2021
It's been 5 days since my last visit but it was cold and rainy a good deal of the time, I was surprised that anything was done. But sure enough, a bird appeared at the right side of the mural.
May 12, 2021
Returning from a trip to Pennsylvania, my first local visit was the giant mural at Fort Monmouth. This time I was smart enough to get the artist's name. Her name is ELLE. When I got home and looked Elle up on the internet I found that Elle is an internationally recognized Street Artist. I also noticed that Elle looked younger and prettier in person, than her photos on the internet.
I mentioned to Elle, how amazing it was to me to me that she could visualize art on such a massive scale. (At the time I didn't realize how famous she was).
I said goodbye to Elle as she was busy working her craft.
July 1, 2021
It's been over a month and a half since my last visit and a lot of work has been done on the mural. I think the mural is complete, but since it is not signed, I wonder. Do murals get signed?, I will visit again to find out.
Beautiful art at such a large scale, boggles the mind.
Hundreds of feet from the east end of the building is the final art work.
Part II
Amazing that on the other side of the first giant mural, shown above, is another one under construction. It's the same large building but this is on the north side.
The complete west side of this building got a white under coat, but the new mural may not extend past the corner.
July 20, 2021
I stopped by to see if any changes were made. I was rather surprised to see a long fence around the mural ??? After looking around the area, it was clear that several close by buildings were torn down and piles of rubble were nearby. I wondered if any future construction would be done in the area, requiring a fence ?
Driving around to the other side of the building, to the second large mural, I noticed no fence blocking access. My guess is that the fence on the other side was to isolate future construction and that at some time in the future, the fence will be removed ?
February 24, 2024
Because the fence was put up just after the Mural was finished, I thought there might be some renovations by adjacent buildings. I was rather surprised to see that a number of buildings were demolished and removed. I didn't have an original photo of the adjacent area, but I guessed that maybe 4 or 5 buildings were removed. Yes, the fence was also removed.
A distance shot showing concrete slabs where several buildings used to stand.
Several new businesses were opened in the building with the murals. One was a brewery (shown here) and another was a bar and restaurant.
After the mural was completed, some air conditioning equipment was added over the top at the right hand corner of the mural.
I am so pleased that I found this artistic gem, and especially pleased to have met Elle, the very talented artist.
(Taken with the Nikon D850 and the Nikon P1000)