By Peri Kinder | [email protected]

South Jordan resident Lindsey Schmidt is an up-and-coming artist in the city. At 14 years old, she already has two art submissions displayed in the area.

A student at Early Light Academy, Lindsey has been playing with different forms of art for several years. She especially enjoys pencil sketching and creating the geometric patterns that can be seen as part of the South Jordan Arts Council’s Jordan River Trail Wall Mural project, located under the bridge at 10600 South near Mulligans.

“It’s one of my favorite painting designs to do,” Lindsey said. “I love making those at home and I think they’re really pretty. They remind me of stained glass and it’s really cool.”

She said the design also brings to mind the practice of Kintsugi, or golden repair, the Japanese art of fixing cracked bowls with lacquer mixed with powdered metallics, like gold or silver. It took her about three hours to complete the design under the bridge and is looking for a new opportunity to practice her art.

“I was super excited when I got to do it,” she said. “I’d been preparing with my mom. We started early in the morning and it turned out really nice.”

Lindsey’s mural is one of ten art displays currently featured in the rotating exhibit. As murals fade over time, or get tagged with graffiti, new artists will add their own designs to the project.

“We wanted to encourage students and amateur artists who are just getting started to have a place where they can create art for the different panels,” said Janell Payne, recreation director for the City of South Jordan. “The artwork has held up wonderfully, we have a couple spots still left. Lindsey has been easy to work with. She was really excited to get started.”

Salt Lake County residents can submit artwork on the South Jordan city website. Selected artists will be given a stipend for their time and materials. Two submissions will be accepted per artist and new mural sections are added in the spring and summer. For more information, visit sjc.utah.gov.

Originally, Lindsey had submitted a design for the South Jordan baseball and softball complex, but when her concept wasn’t selected, she thought she’d try for the mural project. She also designed a utility box wrap in Daybreak, near Early Light Academy. Lindsey painted the design and the city placed it on the box near her school.

“It was another geometric design with hexagons,” she said.

Lindsey hopes to have her own art studio one day, as she continues to explore different art forms. She’d like to have a full-time job creating art and is looking to submit designs to other mural projects in the Salt Lake Valley.

“I really love art,” she said. “I like all art. It’s a lot more creative than sitting at a desk all day.”