Muralist creates “Evening River” at Estes Park Health
With a serene river, a towering mountain, aspens, ponderosas, and flowers, “Evening River” is the newest beautiful mural on the first floor of Estes Park Health.
Local muralist Michael Young painted this wall over the last couple of weeks. The result is a lasting tribute to the beauty that surrounds Estes Park residents and the town’s many visitors.
This is the third mural Young has painted at the hospital in 2024. (Photo by Wendy Rigby/Estes Park Health)
“The scene is a collection of some of the best parts of living in the mountains,” Young explained. “It’s got a different sort of time of day than I am used to painting. You can tell on the mountain that we’re probably looking at a sunset. Then we have the dark trees, the pines and the ponderosas, which aren’t getting as much sun. You are starting to get the mystery of twilight around them. Through it all you have this river which cools the whole scene down. I think that’s the greatest part of the serenity of the whole mural is the slow-moving river. It’s moving slow enough that you’ve got the flowers growing around it.”
The flowers are a lovely mix of yellow, purple, pink, and red. Young asked his friends what kind of flowers would be growing around an alpine river and chose them accordingly. A baby aspen also springs up along the riverbank.
Young noted the aspens represent strength and the ponderosa pines have a sturdiness about them. He also added representatives of the local fauna.
“I put some animals in it this time,” he said. “I chose a majestic elk just chilling. You know his wives are around somewhere. And then the magpie which just says, ‘I’m here. I’m watching you.’”
The mural also includes many exposed rocks which serve as a source of differing colors for the painting.
“I just wanted to show that rocks have beauty, too,” he noted. “They also have a building block design.”
Young signed his masterpiece by putting his name on a sign which looks like a trailhead marker.
Young signed his masterpiece by putting his name on a sign which looks like a trailhead marker. (Photo by Wendy Rigby/Estes Park Health)
When you are standing in the front lobby, the mural is to the right and down the hall. Look for it the next time you visit EPH.
“The hospital needs the chance for some escape beyond the walls,” Young stated. “There are additional ways to take care of ourselves like getting lost in the nature that surrounds us. Instantly you are transported out of your situation. Any way you can heal beyond being at the hospital, go for it.”
Young also painted a hidden treasure in his mural. It is a caricature of a famous actress.
This is the third mural Young has painted at the hospital in 2024. Look for more of his beautiful work to grace the walls of EPH in 2025.
