A national Love Mural Tour will start in St. Petersburg

Get in the mood for love, St. Petersburg.

Artist and activist Lisa Marie Thalhammer is “painting this world a rainbow” with The LOVE Mural tour and is kicking it off in St. Petersburg at The Body Electric Yoga Company (3015 Seventh St. N) on March 20.

Jenny Miller, co-owner of The Body Electric, posted the news on Facebook.

Thalhammer and her team will paint rainbow murals in all 50 U.S. states throughout 2023 and 2024. The project “honors the beautiful diversity of our world and connects us through the power of public art. It is through love that we can come together to solve our world’s most challenging issues, empowering us to listen and value one another,” according to Thalhammer’s website, lisamariestudio.com.

It’s timed for the next U.S. presidential election in an effort to heal division.

The original LOVE mural was painted in Washington, D.C.’s Blagden Alley. According to the website, the project contributed to the economic growth of the neighborhood and is now an internationally known destination, bringing visitors like Lady Gaga. The mural trends on social media with messages of acceptance.

So, why St. Petersburg? Miller was acquainted with Thalhammer when they both lived in Washington, D.C. Thalhammer reached out to Miller for a recommendation on the Florida stop of the tour.

Miller and co-owner Katelyn Grady had been wanting a mural at The Body Electric, and now that they are in the process of buying the building, the opportunity made sense.

“We feel like the rainbow LOVE message aligns with what we’re about at The BE,” Miller said in an email. “It might seem simplistic, but look around at all the hate around us right now. We want people to look at this art and feel affirmed, and like they belong. And being a queer-owned business, it really resonates.”

Miller noted that Thalhammer is also a yogi and said that she told them her concept came in part from her training as a yoga teacher.

Following the U.S. tour, Thalhammer plans to take the project to all seven continents between 2025 and 2029. She intends to bring the mural to the international space station in 2030.