Madison Ruff is a muralist who grew up in Havre, Montana. She is passionate about creating beautiful art and spreading it throughout her community.
Over the course of the last eight days, Ruff has been working on a big mural in Pepin Park. About 200 kids from St. Jude Thaddeus Preschool and Lincoln-Mckinley Primary School, in groups of 20 to 30 students, took turns throughout the week adding to the mural.
“We wanted the kids to feel like they were a part of this mural in the park that they get to hang out in all the time, and they can show their parents and show their friends,” said Ruff. “We also wanted to make it kind of educational, so we have the local fish swimming around it.”
There are five types of fish depicted throughout the mural: northern pike, walleye, perch, rainbow trout and brown trout, all of which can be found around Havre in the reservoirs, lakes, and creeks.
Ruff is proud to be a part of the community in Havre and wants to continue to make areas throughout her community special.
“I've just been trying to make the community more beautiful and give people something that they can feel ownership over,” said Ruff. “A lot of the work is like local landscapes, animals, and community projects with kids.”
This is Ruff’s second volunteer group painting she has done. The first one was with the Rotary Club in Helena, where a bunch of kids came out and participated.
This one is with the school district in Havre.
“We want them to feel like they have ownership over the park that they get to play in all the time, and it hasn't really been painted or touched up,” Ruff said. “We want to make it more beautiful for the community.”
Click here to see more of Ruff's work.
