by BECKY GOFF
Little Apple Post
Sunset Zoo will honor muralist, Phyllis Pease, who painted the newest mural in Exhibition Asia.
The mural depicts the building of Sunset Zoo, on stone panels reaching more than 16 feet tall.
Sunset Zoo's lower tier was built by the Works Progress Administration (WPA), many of the columns and pillars from the original build were incorporated into the Exhibition Asia exhibits.
There are animals within the mural that were among the first at the Sunset Zoo, and some of the current animals are included as well.
The mural was funded by a private donor who wanted the story of the Sunset Zoo to be told in an artistic way.
Sunset Zoo was founded in 1933 in Manhattan, Kansas. As part of the New Deal Program, the Works Progress Administration helped build large portions of the Zoo from 1935- 1941.
"You've seen a lot of murals around town and this is one that will tell the history of how the zoo was built. So it was built with the WPA project back in the '30s and so it depicts that along with a lot of animals integrated with mural." Sunset Zoo, communications and marketing director, Melissa Kirkwood says.
The public is invited to come to see the mural Wednesday, July 20, from 4 p.m. - 6 p.m, during a come-and-go reception at Sunset Zoo.