By David Fleet

Editor

Goodrich– Don Bullis is all about the rust color. For Carol Garrison it’s the bright flowers.

The differing artistic expressions became part of the village streetscrape as area artists gathered on Hegel Road to paint the downtown benches.

“The artists painting reflects the public’s involvement and ownership of their public spaces,” said Angie Adamec, a Goodrich Village Volunteer. “Expressions of local art serve that purpose as well as providing interest for public viewing.”

The village council approved the project, which was spearheaded by the GVV, with assistance from the Village DPW to brighten up the downtown area.

Bullis arrived in the village with a pallet which included burnt sienna, camden yellow and Indian red. He considers himself a “rustologist.”

“I see a story in rust,” said Bullis, 86. “Whether it’s a rusty old door knob, chain or old keys—it’s really fun to paint. I grew up in the Big Band era and most of the classic cars from the time are rusty now. I guess I paint junk or, if to be politically correct, we call it ‘Backyard Memorabilia.’”

Detroit native Bullis was a draftsman for General Motors for many years, working on seat design and later working on seat belts for Chrysler Corporation. He retired at age 66 and has become a full-time artist. He currently owns a studio in Grand Blanc.

“It’s almost abstract art,” he said. “It’s ‘rustology.’ I try to invoke a feeling of the past through my art. I consider how an object looks after being out in nature for many years.”

The GVV have been serving the community for several years with services and projects such as the playground in the park, a memory bench and a bike path garden. The GVV facilitated the creation and building of the monument park entrance sign and garden at the Hegel Road entrance to the park.

“We view our public spaces as something that we all should be contributing to, and be proud of, as citizens of our community,” said Adamec. “We are always looking for optimistic people to join our small group in any way they can. We feel very fortunate to have local artists step forward and offer their skills for this painting project.”