“Simulacrum” was made by artists Steven Paul, Gretchen Coleman, and community leader Sunni Purviance. This mosaic mural is at the old Viscose Factory where it pays homage to the Industrial Park, both past and present. In the mural, the factory is depicted with a train at the bottom, a nod to the area’s industrial history. Paul also wanted to show some of the life in the park despite the area being an old factory which he incorporated “ballerinas dancing in the sky and soccer balls flying.” The mural is made up of broken tiles and found pieces.

About the artist:
Steven Paul is a local artist who’s known for his mosaics. He studied under the instruction of Isaiah Zagar while living in Philadelphia, PA and when he moved to Roanoke, he made a mosaic on his garage wall and loved it. From this, he has made several wall mosaics throughout Roanoke. Steven Paul makes abstract mosaics only and doesn’t have a specific audience but rather leaves his work for anyone to enjoy. View more of his work at his website Multiverse Mosaics or Instagram multiversemosaics

Gretchen Coleman is an architectural engineer who lives in Roanoke. She enjoys creating art and is aspiring to do kinetic art and large-scale junk art. As she stated, “throughout my career, I’ve indulged my creative side through what I call ‘crafts,’ but my friends call art.” She has also helped assist with other mosaics such as the ROA SE mural, along with Steven Paul, and her “I AM, WE ARE, ROANOKE” has also been featured in the Roanoke art collection which can be viewed here: Artwork Archive: "I AM, WE ARE, ROANOKE"

Sourced from:
The Roanoke Times: Artists Steven Paul, Gretchen Coleman Create Wild Mosaics Depicting the Roanoke Neighborhoods they Inhabit"
Information was also obtained from details given by Steven Paul.