Artistic Vision

The TRUE Art Company Inspires One Mural at a Time

Writer / Angela Cornell

Photography Provided

It doesn’t take turning on the news to see that the world has real challenges. The evidence is all around us. It’s on social media, in texts from family and friends, and in the communities that we hold near and dear. For Brandon Eads, this became part of his inspiration for founding The TRUE Art Company.

“I wanted to create a nonprofit that was engaged at focusing on multiple destructive points in society,” he explains. “I was inspired through my children and really just trying to help others.”

Eads, a Kosciusko County native, moved back to Warsaw from California in January of 2021 and established The TRUE Art Company as a way to benefit his community by bringing it together through beauty and creativity.

“It stands for Transform, Revitalize, Uplift and Empower,” he says. “We’re trying to change the definition of art from a picture on the wall, like Banksy famous artwork, to a look in the mirror. We really know the power that mural art brings to communities, whether they’re driving by it or taking a selfie in front of it.”

The team works to fulfill their mission in several ways. One of the primary ways is by their Mural Consciousness program. Small businesses will pay Eads to put a spray-painted mural on the side of their building. However, every year, Eads gifts four free permanent murals to long-standing area small businesses. Sometimes, as with the “Mail Pouch” mural in Rochester, the design already exists and just needs a fresh coat of paint. Eads creates others from scratch, like the rose-themed mural on the Home Sweet Home building in Warsaw. A permanent mural takes about four to six weeks to complete, depending on weather. 

Another way that Eads shares his work is through Community Connections events. Local outdoor event planners hire him to bring a portable, 32’x13’ mural to events, whether it’s a private birthday party or a public event like Warsaw’s First Fridays. When Eads is hired, he tries to coordinate with the client’s wishes.

“We do the research on the event – what kind of event it is,” Eads says. “I go to the owner and say, ‘What do you want to see in the mural?’ To a lot of them I’ll say, ‘Give me a list of five things you like, three colors and a message you want it to convey.’”

Depending on the client’s wishes, he may paint the wall himself while onlookers watch.

“It’s a really cool thing for people to be able to sit and watch you paint, to watch something come together from nothing,” he says.

The other option involves setting up a portable wall as a hands-on mega activity for anyone passing by. At these events, Eads outlines the design on the wall so that it resembles a coloring page. After that, he separates the wall into a grid so participants can only draw one square.

Children especially enjoy this option, even the reserved ones.

“It’s an amazing thing to watch a kid step out of their comfort zone to try something new,” Eads says. “That’s like with the process of life. We have to step out of our comfort zone to create anything that is true and will last. Once they get going, they want to paint the whole thing themselves.”

Either way, the point is that people of all ages can enjoy the creative process together.

“The process is what we’re wanting to give people,” Eads explains. “It’s not really the end product, it’s the process. That’s what we want to show society. That’s the most important part. We’re trying to earn a better community for ourselves.”

Eads has watched communities come together in unity over murals, both on a side of a building and at a local festival.

“It’s nice to bring this medium of spray paint to generations that don’t know about art with spray paint, other than what they see on the side of a train car,” he explains. “It’s a fun thing for me, and it’s an amazing thing to see people’s responses and what they feel when things come together like that.”

The TRUE Art Company is gearing up for another great season of bringing spectacular mural painting to communities near you. To find out which event they will go to next, follow them at facebook.com/TheTRUEartcompany. To hire Eads to paint a mural on your wall or to volunteer, contact him at brandoneads@thetrueartcompany.com, or call him at 574-201-1549. Visit thetrueartcompany.com for more information.