Revolution Jewelry Works Mural
When Jennifer Farnes bought the building that houses Revolution Jewelry Works in January 2020, it felt like the culmination of hard work coming together exactly as it needed to. She would be able to protect her business from large corporate property owners for decades to come by getting fixed payments for her small slice of Powers-adjacent land. Visions of the future of the property were on the horizon, including revitalized landscaping, new metal and brick facades, fresh asphalt, and eventually a mural.
Of course, we all know what 2020 actually brought to small businesses. While the property was a done deal, the future felt uncertain. Thanks to an amazing partnership with Academy Bank, and the dedication of her team, Jennifer was able to recover from the shutdowns and know the dream was still alive. A few of the property upgrades came to fruition, but there were still many more on the horizon.
In 2023, Revolution Jewelry Works celebrated its 10th Anniversary, and the timing felt right to give something back to the city that had helped keep one small business dream alive. In collaboration with her jeweler, Liz Kenagy, ideas were put onto paper for what was possible for the large blank wall of the property. Liz reached out to Artistic Gold Creative Concepts for a plan to put into action.
For Jennifer, giving a nod to her childhood was the most important. Having spent many summer afternoons with her older brothers digging for crystals in the mountains of Montana, she wanted the memories to be a part of the story. Since Colorado is now home, of course, it made perfect sense to depict Pikes Peak; but if you stop and take a closer look at the mural you will see it is created entirely of “crystal points” like Jennifer collected as a child.
You will find Freya the Greyhound among the scene – the honorary employee and store mascot of Revolution Jewelry Works from the first year they were open until she departed in 2022 after a battle with bone cancer. The entire team felt it was important to have her immortalized among the rocks and trees where she loved to roam and play. The final details depict two monarch butterflies which represent Jennifer’s mother, Carolyn; a prolific painter for many decades who began signing her paintings with the same butterflies when Jennifer was born to represent their bond as mother and daughter. Carolyn passed away in 2002, but has always been a driving force for Jennifer’s passion for art and design.
