Where's the Beaver?

San Fran Chronicle Reporter Carolyn Jones felt this was an important question to ask in her front page article last Friday.  The same question was asked the week prior in a San Jose Mercury News article.

Where's the Beaver?

Artist Mario Alfaro was commissioned to paint a mural in downtown Martinez.  The plan was the mural would depict some of the town's special history and landmark moments. That history included John Muir, Joe DiMaggio, some pastoral scenes, bayscapes and fishing.  Artist Alfaro enthusiastically began his artistic work and while painting was approached by several passersby and residents, asking him to include a famous symbol of Martinez, the beaver, in the fishing story mural. 

Exercising his artistic freedom and resonating with the request, the artist included the beaver in the lower right corner of a fish preparation scene. It was a beautiful portrayal and, in my and many others' opinions, quite appropriate. Surely, it did not detract from the overall purpose of the mural and actually added the dimension of Martinez' wildlife history to the mural.  

But Martinez officials felt the image of the beaver was inappropriate next to that of Muir and DiMaggio, even if beavers have been in the spotlight since reappearing in a local creek in 2006. Since then, the Martinez beavers have brought a national focus to this species and its special history in the Martinez community.  

Any concern about water flow being less than human-desired is now addressed with the Beaver Solutions filtering device. The flow device can be installed in the lower portion of a dam to facilitate regular water flow and velocity.  And it has been installed beneath the dam in Alhambra Creek where the beavers make their lodge and habitat. Beavers, like many other wildlife species taken at the hand of blood-thirsty hunters and trappers, actually help create sophisticated ecosystems for other species. 

Much evidence exists to support the observation that beavers are the best natural architects of our waterways, with much to teach us. To learn more about beavers, check out Worth a Dam. 

Artist Alfaro's decision was to paint the beaver into the mural. But after some in Martinez complained because a beaver was included in the fishing preparation scene, Alfaro was instructed to remove the image from the mural. He complied, and he also painted over his signature as the creator of the mural, as he no longer wanted to be the artist affiliated with the work. Kudos to the artist for his courage and to those in Martinez who requested the beaver be included in the mural.

In earlier Martinez days, the beaver and many other wildlife species were likely earliest residents. Now, with the return of the beaver to Martinez and its place in local history, its depiction in the mural was relevant. 

It seems a martini made it into the mural, as many believe the martini originated in Martinez.  Surely, if a martini can be painted into a history mural in the hometown of John Muir, a wildlife species representing local current and past history can also.

....
Worth a Dam hosted the 4th annual Beaver Festival on August 6.  It was a wonderful community experience in the informally-named Beaver Park next to Alhambra Creek. Just several feet away from the festival location is the Beaver dam. A walk onto the bridge overlooking Alhambra Creek transported visitors who could see the beaver dam into a peaceful experience in nature.

Children who love wildlife and came to the Festival enjoyed painting beaver tails and gathering charms from the beaver's ecosystem. The last stop of charm-gathering was the Linking Booth, where the charms were put together into a lovely charm bracelet depicting the totality of the beaver's ecosystem.  

These are community values, current and historic, that could be reflected in artist Alfaro's mural. The artist aligned with his artistic values and removed his name from the mural. His name reappearing, along with the re-painting of the Beaver in the fish preparation scene, would make the Martinez history mural a true work of art - and history.  Let's hope for the best community spirit in Martinez so this can happen. The Bay Area and others in the country are watching.

There's the beaver?