Kensington Art Walk Tour
Kensington has many works of commissioned art located in public places throughout Town. Murals and carvings are located in parks and on buildings large and small.
- Wizard of Oz Carvings
- Hold Your Light Mural
- Silver Creek Tree Mural
- Safeway Window Art
- David Gregg Carving
- Ernest the Eagle Carving
- Hawk Island Carving
- Crosby the Owl Carving
- Neighborhood Birds Carving
- Eyes Open Mural
- Stardust
- BabyCat Mural
- Summer Days Mural
- Flinn Park Guards Carving
- Butterfly Mural
- 1894 Mural
- Musical Mural
- Book Plants Mural
- Howling Dog Carving
- Dog Columns Murals
- Bear Bench Carvings
- Giraffe Mural
Wizard of Oz Carvings
4201 Knowles Ave, Kensington, MD 20895
+1 240-773-9515
https://www.montgomerycountymd.gov/Library/branches/kensingtonpark.html
Artist: Jason Swain. Located at Kensington Park Library in the 'Wizard of Oz' outdoor garden. Toto and the Red Ruby Slippers were carved from a local Gingko tree. Both statues are part of the Library's Wizard of Oz themed garden. Date of Installation: 2017.
Hold Your Light Mural
4002 Howard Ave, Kensington, MD 20895, USA
Artists: Nicole Bourgea and Meaghan McNamara. Located at Summit Avenue Bridge. Residents used a glow-in-the-dark paint to “light” the lanterns on each of the buildings depicted in the mural. The mural serves as a call to hold a light to every person we meet, to really see one another’s humanity and to treat each other with dignity and respect. Commissioned by the Town of Kensington, MD in recognition of neighboring Ken-Gar, a tiny, close-knit neighborhood of strong souls, many of whom are descended from formerly enslaved people. The mural title comes from one of the older African American spirituals traditionally sung call-and-response style. Date of Installation: 2020.
Silver Creek Tree Mural
3910 Knowles Ave, Kensington, MD 20895
+1 301-778-1331
Artist: Nicole Bourgea. Located at Silver Creek Senior Living. This 50-foot mural is integrated with a green screen located at the lower 20 feet. This green screen will fill with climbing vines planted at the base. The Silver Creek Senior Living logo is a majestic tree that is reflective of the importance of maintaining our tree canopy in the Kensington Community and Rock Creek Regional Park. The artist and the owner worked together to reflect ideas for a majestic tree mural. Date of Installation: 2022.
Safeway Window Art
10417 Armory Ave, Kensington, MD 20895, USA
Artists: Vicky Surles, Jennifer Lynn Beaudet, & Debra Halprin. Location: Safeway (rear entrance) | 10541 Connecticut Avenue. Details: Four window panels on the back of the Safeway building contain works of art by four local artists. The panels represent the Kensington community in four ways: Community Spirit; Creative Arts; Nature’s Beauty; and History. Inspiration: The beauty of Kensington landmarks was the inspiration. The artists that created the original paintings found this beauty on their own and generously shared their creations with Town. Date of Installation: June 2019
David Gregg Carving
10400 Armory Ave, Kensington, MD 20895
+1 301-949-2424
Artist: Jason Swain. Located at Reinhardt Park. Carved from American Ash. This statue is a tribute to local tree guy David Gregg, who at the young age of 90 decided to retire from a business he had been in for more than 70 years. He had served the Kensington area for many years and recently retired to Pennsylvania. Date of Installation: 2019.
Ernest the Eagle Carving
10301 Connecticut Ave, Kensington, MD 20895
Artist: Jason Swain. Located at Ernest Memorial Park. Ernest is a remake of the original eagle statue that deteriorated. The original and the new one is a dedication to both the military and to the artists niece, Katie, who passed away in 2007. Date of Installation: Ernest One 2008 Ernest Two 2017.
Hawk Island Carving
10226 Carroll Pl, Kensington, MD 20895, USA
Artist: Jason Swain. Located at Hawk Island at the intersection of Fawcett Street and Carroll Place. Carved from white pine. This hawk was originally inside Town Hall for many years until it found its home on Hawk Island. Date of Installation: 2022.
Crosby the Owl Carving
10237 Carroll Pl, Kensington, MD 20895
+1 240-773-9570
Artist: Jason Swain. Located at Noyes Library for Young Children. Carved from a piece of Black Cherry. Commissioned by a local Girl Scout Troop using their cookie money project. The girls raised enough money to have an owl carved to represent Noyes Library mascot. Date of Installation: 2012.
Neighborhood Birds Carving
10207-10225 Kensington Pkwy, Kensington, MD 20895
Artist: Jason Swain. Located at Clum-Kennedy Park. Five birds are featured on this carving to include a woodpecker, blue jay, cardinal, oriole and a hawk on the top. Carved from America Ash. Inspired by residents who wanted a piece representing the local bird life. Date of Installation: 2021.
Eyes Open Mural
10280 Frederick Ave, Kensington, MD 20895, USA
Artist: Nicole Bourgea. Located at Frederick Avenue Bridge. Native plants, wildflowers, and an epigraph are painted on the side of the bridge. Commissioned by the Town of Kensington’s Greenscape Committee. The mural concept was drawn from a line from the journal of one of the Town’s original residents, Ms. Bertha Clum. She wrote, “Finding wildflowers is not all luck. You have to keep your eyes open.” Date of Installation: 2020.
Stardust
10233 Kensington Pkwy, Kensington, MD 20895, USA
Artist Nicole Bourgea. Located on the back wall of Old Town Market at 10251 Kensington Parkway. Details: An enormous wall with subtle texture changes that sing at different times of day. Named for a poem, ’93 Percent Stardust.’ We are all passing through, but what a privilege to have really loved and been loved by another person/star in this lifetime. Inspiration: This mural was painted in honor of Jack Gaffey, a beloved fixture of Kensington. His friends and family tell many sweet stories, including his tradition of standing up at the end of every Town Council Meeting to report on the night sky over Kensington. His love for mathematical equations and Euler’s number, where digits go on forever, is represented in the mural. Date of Installation: October 2023
BabyCat Mural
10241 Kensington Pkwy, Kensington, MD 20895
+1 301-302-8892
Artist Nicole Bourgea. Located at BabyCat Brewery. A fun, colorful celebration of our Town's new Brewery Mascot. Come have a beer in our own Kensington jungle. Owner, Sam Mussomeli, named the brewery after his cat Alice, a.k.a, “Baby Cat,” whose life consisted of hiding, until the first day she smelled Sam brewing beer in the kitchen. From that day forward Baby Cat became the supervisor. Date of Installation: 2022.
Summer Days Mural
10251 Kensington Pkwy, Kensington, MD 20895, USA
+1 301-942-2294
Artists: Meaghan McNamara and Kasey O'Boyle. Located at Old Town Market. Commissioned by the owner of Old Town Market to add a splash of color and interest to the front of the shop. Summer days of biking, sun and soft ice cream. Date of Installation: 2021.
Flinn Park Guards Carving
10310 Kensington Parkway, Kensington, MD 20895
301-949-2424
Artist: Jason Swain. Located at Flinn Park. Carved from Norway Maple. The red fox and raccoon are common neighborhood animals that make occasional appearances. This pair is guarding Flinn Park. Date of Installation: October 2023
Butterfly Mural
10408 Montgomery Ave, Kensington, MD 20895
+1 301-949-8626
Artist: Nicole Bourgea. Located at Jubilee Association of American Building. this 20--by-25 feet mural was inspired by Robert G. Ingersoll’s quote, “We Rise by Lifting Others” includes a scene of a migration of monarch butterflies using vibrant purples and blues and will have taken about ten days to complete. Date of Installation: September 2019, Kensington's second mural.
1894 Mural
10420 Montgomery Ave, Kensington, MD 20895
+1 301-933-9608
Artist Matt Corrado and Meaghan McNamara. 75-by-28 foot mural. Celebrating the community’s local history. Date of Installation: October 2017. Kensington's first major mural.
Musical Mural
3762 Howard Ave, Kensington, MD 20895
+1 301-466-1358
Artists: Kasey Ott, Ricky Sears and Meaghan McNamara. Located at GIGS Studio. Mural designed by Sean Gaiser and family, and brought to life by amazing friends and KTown neighbors. Date of Installation: 2022
Book Plants Mural
3786 Howard Ave, Kensington, MD 20895
+1 301-949-9416
Artist: Nicole Bourgea. Located at Kensington Row Bookshop. Whimsical, colorful, growing book plants in terra-cotta pots and on balconies reminiscent of Kensington Row Bookshop owner's native Barcelona. Commissioned by Kensington Row Bookshop to express a way of sharing the magic that is happening inside the shop. Date of Installation: 2021.
Howling Dog Carving
10450 Metropolitan Ave, Kensington, MD 20895, USA
Artist: Jason Swain. Located at Kensington Dog Run. Carved from a piece of Gingko. This dog was originally the guard dog at the Kensington's Public Works Building, but when the Dog Run opened, he naturally was more suited to be with other dogs. Date of Installation: 2022.
Dog Columns Murals
10448 Metropolitan Ave, Kensington, MD 20895, USA
Artist: Jason Swain, Thomas Ruttkay, Max Stumpf & Beth Meyer. Located at the Dog Run Park. These concrete piers were remnants from a previous concrete plant. Once the Dog Run Park was complete, the Town wanted to paint them, but they were full of graffiti. The Town decided to paint dog art and enlisted local artists to enhance them. Date of Installation: 2019.
Bear Bench Carvings
3500 Plyers Mill Road, Kensington, MD 20895
Artist: Jason Swain. Located at St. Paul Park. Carved from a combination of American Ash, Black Cherry, and Red Oak. This bench was a collaboration between Mayor Tracey Furman and the artist, Jason Swain. It was to add some interest to St. Paul Park and has become a magnet for kids and family photos. Date of Installation: 2018.
Giraffe Mural
3720 Farragut Ave, Kensington, MD 20895
Artist Nicole Bourgea. This five-story high giraffe was painted with just two paintbrushes. Commissioned by John Blick, owner of The Blick Building. The artist's inspiration came from "Love over Fear.' Put in the work, let go and thrill in the ride. In 2023, Nicole added Jasper, the dog. Date of Installation: 2022