BEAUMONT, Texas — Some Southeast Texans have taken to Facebook to express their anger over the defacement of a mural that stretches 300 feet along Calder Ave in the west end of Beaumont.
The 300 x 8-foot mural on a block wall along the 4400 block of Calder Ave near Thomas Road was tagged with spray paint over the past weekend.
The mural was painted on the wall outside of a Thomas road home four years ago by Beaumont artist, Suzette Broussard.
Sometime over the past weekend someone defaced the mural and Broussard believes it was probably kids.
At least two different Facebook posts are garnering angry comments about the graffiti but Broussard seems to be taking it in stride.
The fact that this is the first time the 4-year-old mural has been vandalized surprises Broussard, who told 12News Tuesday morning that with public art it's always possible for this type of thing to happen.
"You can’t' get angry about that kind of stuff," she said.
She has spoken to the homeowners and says they have already ordered some paint to match the green background of the mural.
Because the graffiti is confined to the open green spaces of the mural and not the detailed flowers, plants and animals she says it will be an easy fix.
The homeowners will probably be able to have their own painter touch it up she said.
Of course, even though she was pretty calm about the incident she doesn't condone it saying "it's a shame."
Broussard has been creating art since she was a kid in Southeast Texas and is quite happy to be making a living as a working artist.
The mural came about after she had painted a couple of traffic boxes in a program sponsored by the City of Beaumont.
After creating some outdoor public art she was eager to find a wall to create a larger mural.
She took to Facebook soliciting a place to paint and got lots of suggestions but an old high school friend connected her with a Beaumont doctor and his wife who live on the other side of that long wall.
They started by having her paint a 100 foot section of the wall one summer she said. It got a great response even before it was finished she told 12News.
People walking by, waiting for the bus and even a few homeless people told her how much they liked it.
One homeless man thanked her for creating such a beautiful work she says.
"It was a fun project” Broussard said.
The doctor and his wife, who are supporters of the arts, liked it so much they asked if she'd like to continue and paint the rest of the wall. She quickly agreed but opted to paint the last 200 feet in the cool of the fall.
She says there are 50 different animals and bugs in the mural if you look closely.
After the mural was completed Broussard's grown daughter called and told her that the mural had become a "Poke-stop" and then had to explain the PokemonGo game to her.
The large mural has led to Broussard being commissioned to create murals at several other Southeast Texas locations.
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This is a developing story. We will update with more if and when we receive more confirmed information.
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