Note: Photos contributed by Maria Norris.

Local Rockmart High student artist Elizabeth Stone is still hard at work on the mural project on the wall of Brackett Cleaner’s in downtown Rockmart, but with some delays due to weather, the holidays, and family time getting in the way.

Stone, who started the work back in November to prepare the side of the building for the work with the help of volunteers and friends, and then stenciled on the first portion of the design has been spending the past month trying to get in time to fill in the letters of the centerpiece with the message “good vibes.” Additional work on the mural still needs to be done before it can continue forward.

Being completed thanks to donations and in coordination with The Perch on Marble owner Stacey Lovvorn, the mural replaces the one that had been up for decades was fading away that represented the arts.

Weather delays the main hindrance to her completion of the project in a timely fashion. She explained when she first began filling in the centerpiece design that she can only paint in weather 40 degrees and warmer, and when there’s no threat of rain to wash away the work she’s completed.

Once completed, Stone plans to use the mural as part of her overall portfolio of work to present in her application in coming years to the Savannah College of Art and Design.

After she finishes, it will be one of several murals in Polk County that have been completed in recent years. Most of those are located in downtown Cedartown, and feature local history and culture as the main themes.