Art major from Greensburg, Kentucky, hopes tribute to Twain will renew interest in author’s work, his family ties to Columbia.
by Duane Bonifer
COLUMBIA, KY. (06/16/2026) Lindsey Wilson University student Tezon Mitchell ’27 had wanted to paint a mural since he was a student at Campbellsville High School.
That motivation was born one day in an art class, when Mitchell heard from artist le diegue about how he created the mural “Flowganometric Composition” on a building’s wall in Campbellsville.
“He showed us how it worked, his thought process behind everything and what kind of opportunities are available in the world with that type of project,” said Mitchell, an art major from Greensburg, Kentucky. “It was very fascinating to me from the beginning, but I never really expected that this was something I would be doing with my future.”
The future came to Mitchell on Monday, June 15, when he helped dedicate a mural of Mark Twain to celebrate and preview the upcoming “Mark Twain Storytelling Festival,” which will be held June 19-20 at Lindsey Wilson.
Mitchell, who was commissioned by the city of Columbia, painted a mural of Twain that is 12 feet wide and 10 feet tall on the east side of the building at 106 Jamestown St., which houses the store Sweet Pea’s By The Square.
“Now that it’s here, it’s very satisfying,” said Mitchell.
Mitchell used six colors of exterior acrylic paint to create a mural on a brick wall that features a middle-aged Twain standing behind a waist-high wall. Twain’s right hand is draped over the wall, holding a pencil that is poised to pen another story. In the background is the Mississippi River, which informed so many of Twain’s stories.
“I wanted something that was going to put him front and center of the composition, and I wanted to include a little bit of nature around him,” said Mitchell.
Although born in Missouri, Twain could trace part of his family roots to Columbia, the 1803 birthplace of his mother, Jane Lampton Clemens. Shortly after Jane Lampton married John Marshall Clemens in 1823, the couple moved to Tennessee before heading to Missouri, where Samuel Clemens was born in 1835. Nearly 30 years later, he would start to use the nom de plume Mark Twain.
Speaking of Twain’s mother, Michell’s mural includes a quote by Twain above his head that reads: “My mother had a great deal of trouble with me, but I think she enjoyed it.”
“That’s a sentiment that a lot of people can relate to with their childhood and growing up,” said Mitchell.
Challenges and triumphs
Mitchell said it took about two weeks to plan and create a draft of the mural, then about a month to paint it, allowing for a few days of delay when wet weather didn’t allow for painting outside.
“It was harder in ways I didn’t expect,” said Mitchell. “Initially, the idea of the brick being textured and having a lot of unusual depth compared to canvas — that kind of concept made it seem like a very daunting task. But some of the bigger issues I had with the mural were I used spray paint in some areas, so there were overspray problems in some parts.”
Mitchell said he painted mostly in afternoons, when the sun had passed the building.
“It was really difficult getting colors to match because there were different amounts of sunlight shining down on me, so colors would be inaccurate,” he said. “Or whenever the paints I used dried, they dried darker than they were either in my paint cups, on my brush or on the surface when they were still wet.”
Because the mural is located on a building that is on one of the busier streets in Columbia, Mitchell said he hopes its high-traffic location will cause more people to learn about Twain and appreciate his work.
“It’s crazy to think that Twain’s mother lived here, but it’s even crazier that so few people know about it,” said Mitchell. “I hope that people will see this mural and be a little more curious about Mark Twain or writing or art in general. I hope that this will inspire people to reach out to the arts more often. And maybe they will discover new experiences that can better their lives.”
Lindsey Wilson University student Tezon Mitchell ’27 of Greensburg, Kentucky, stands next to the Mark Twain mural he painted on a Columbia building on Jamestown Street. The mural was dedicated on Monday, June 15, to celebrate and preview the upcoming “Mark Twain Storytelling Festival,” which will be held June 19-20 at Lindsey Wilson.
Lindsey Wilson University student Tezon Mitchell ’27 of Greensburg, Kentucky, stands next to the Mark Twain mural he painted on a Columbia building on Jamestown Street. The mural was dedicated on Monday, June 15, to celebrate and preview the upcoming “Mark Twain Storytelling Festival,” which will be held June 19-20 at Lindsey Wilson.
Lindsey Wilson University student Tezon Mitchell ’27 of Greensburg, Kentucky, and Columbia Mayor Pamela Hoots, center, dedicate the Mark Twain mural on Monday, June 15, that Mitchell painted on a Columbia building on Jamestown Street. The mural was dedicated to celebrate and preview the upcoming “Mark Twain Storytelling Festival,” which will be held June 19-20 at Lindsey Wilson.
Lindsey Wilson University student Tezon Mitchell ’27 of Greensburg, Kentucky, and Columbia Mayor Pamela Hoots dedicate the Mark Twain mural on Monday, June 15, that Mitchell painted on a Columbia building on Jamestown Street. The mural was dedicated to celebrate and preview the upcoming “Mark Twain Storytelling Festival,” which will be held June 19-20 at Lindsey Wilson.
Lindsey Wilson University is a vibrant liberal arts university in Columbia, Kentucky. Founded in 1903 and affiliated with The United Methodist Church, the mission of Lindsey Wilson is to serve the educational needs of students by providing a living-learning environment within an atmosphere of active caring and Christian concern where every student, every day, learns and grows and feels like a real human being. Lindsey Wilson offers 30 undergraduate majors, five graduate programs and a doctoral program. The university’s 29 intercollegiate varsity athletic teams have won more than 120 team and individual national championships.
(Duane Bonifer – Lindsey Wilson University)