Far from home, SEMO graduate gains recognition through art

This article has been corrected.

Southeast Missouri State University graduate and former Scott County resident Liz Richter stepped from small-town obscurity directly into the limelight this past weekend. The up-and-coming artist was featured in an HGTV "Home Town Kickstart" episode titled "Love for La Grange."

The episode, set in La Grange, Kentucky, was filmed about 30 miles northeast from where Richter resides in Louisville. HGTV commissioned Richter to paint a mural based around the slogan "Be the 'I' in kindness." The venture partially revolved around raising awareness for Down’s Syndrome.

Born in Paducah, Kentucky, Richter said she and her entire family have deep roots in the Southeast Missouri region. Richter recalled a Southeast Missourian mentor who had a special influence on her development, when she was a student teacher for his wife.

"The first muralist I ever got to know is Craig Thomas. His wife is one of the art teachers for Cape [Girardeau] Central High School. Craig is probably the only muralist that I know of from Cape and, you know, he's awesome," Richter said.

In front of her mural, Elizabeth Richter, center, stands with Rylyn Richins, left, and Reagan Richins, the two sisters behind the "Kindness Campaign," featured on the show HGTV show "Home Town Kickstart.Courtesy of Elizabeth Richter

After graduating, Richter moved to be with her husband in Louisville, but never lost touch with her roots.

"My family is, like, very proud. I've had a lot of people from Southeast Missouri texting me over the weekend that they watched the show and how excited they were to see it," Richter said. "I'd like to come home and do a mural there someday."

Although most of her contacts are based in Louisville, Richter said she hopes to grow beyond the current confines, branching out to work in small towns across the country.

"Murals create a sense of space. I have seen the potential of how murals can build a sense of community, bring people together and just really bring joy to a space," she said. "A lot of small towns already have a sense of identity and pride in their community. I want to provide a visual representation of that. Small towns are intimate, there's so much potential, especially in the Midwest."

Richter believes there's something special about "art on the street" setting it apart from classical painting and sculpture.

"With public art, on the street, there's true accessibility. It belongs to everyone. When you have pieces inside a museum, there's only a certain portion of the population that will study those works," Richter said. "A piece on the street belongs to everybody — it creates autonomy and allows you to experience art on your own terms. That's such a powerful way to use art and bring it to the public. Especially for communities that aren't exposed to much art, it can be an entryway into a new world. It can offer so much joy and that is our common denominator. That's my favorite reason to make art — to build a sense of community."

As a child, Richter wasn't exposed to much art, but she recalled seeing a mural and feeling it instill a sense of place in her young mind. It made a small town seem large.

Richter's father resides in Morley, Missouri, a town with a population of fewer than 1,000. Richter dreams of putting such small towns on the proverbial map.

In the future, Richter said she would like to honor those who have passed away because of the COVID-19 pandemic. There has been a lot of loss, Richter reflected, and said she'd like to commemorate, honor and address the trauma of tragedy through art.

"I feel like Southeast Missouri was hit really heavily. There's an impact to that. There's shared trauma around all the lives that were lost. Yes, it's a little bit dark to make it into a mural. But it could also be a very moving way to commemorate loss. I have a really crazy long-term goal of doing a really high, 40-foot mural with depictions of those who passed from COVID going up a staircase," Richter said.

"I know, that's super specific. To be more general, I would love to come back and do something to celebrate the Southeast Missouri region, because it was home to me for a very long time. I would really love to [do a mural] on a huge grain silo in Southeast Missouri, just out in the middle of nowhere, somewhere really remote."

Richter's first solo gallery show is slated for the first weekend of August at Revelry Boutique Gallery in downtown Louisville.

Richter's first paid gig was for Cape Girardeau's Saint Francis Medical Center.