Jackson artist's mural unveiled

MANALAPAN - On June 27, postal officials, community leaders, local historians and educators unveiled a 4-by-5-foot mural in the lobby of the Manalapan-Englishtown post office.

The large colorful mural was painted and donated by aspiring 24-year-old artist April Kuhn.

Kuhn, a Jackson resident and former interior design major at Brookdale Community College, illustrated four historic scenes from the history of the Manalapan-Englishtown area, according to a press release.

The center of the large canvas mural features the Manalapan municipal seal with four historic scenes radiating from the middle. Of the four scenes, the most famous is the depiction of the Battle of Monmouth. Generally considered to be one of the turning points in the Revo-lutionary War, the Battle of Monmouth was fought in June 1778 in the Manalapan-Englishtown area.

The idea for the historic mural was sparked by postal employees participating in the local USPS Central New Jersey Quality of Work Life-Employee Involvement Team. The effort echoes the spirit of the WPA-era murals painted by artists working for the government's Section of Fine Arts, which was run by the Procurement Division of the Treas-ury Department, according to the press release.

Approximately 1,200 murals and 300 sculptures were commissioned by the Section of Fine Arts during the nine years of its existence from 1934 to 1943. Of this number, about 1,000 murals and 200 sculptures are owned by the postal service today.