Meet Sally the Salamander
Have you seen Sally the Salamander around TXST and around town? Next time you're out walking around, look a the storm sewer manholes. Sally can be found on the storm sewer manhole covers to remind us that stormwater runoff drains to the river.
Manhole Cover Art Contest
The Manhole Cover Art Contest took place in 2013 as a joint project between TXST and the City of San Marcos. The goal of the project was to get residents, school children, students, faculty, and staff involved in the process of addressing stormwater pollution. Community involvement is an important aspect in cultivating stormwater pollution prevention as a team effort. Those who took part in the competition were encouraged to create an art piece that would remind everyone that storm drains ultimately lead to the river. The winning piece of art was a combined piece between two Texas State students, Andrea Weissenbuehler and Mabel Sirup. Weissenbuehler designed the center while Sirup designed the rim.
Winning Artwork
The winning artwork, a combined piece by two artists, named "Sally the Salamander."
While the two pieces were created separately, the center message ties the entire piece together: "Remember Your Friends in the Water", a message with the intent of helping viewers make a connection with creatures living in the river. The main artwork, featuring the fittingly dubbed Sally the Salamander, is an adaptation of the San Marcos salamander, one of several federally threatened species that reside in the upper San Marcos River. Weissenbuehler got her inspiration to draw Sally from many trips to the Meadows Center where she studied the river and its inhabitants for her graduate coursework.
