As part of an effort to beautify downtown Milton, members of the Milton Arts Guild painted new, strawberry-themed murals in, where else, Strawberry Alley.

The alley runs behind the brick building on Federal Street where the art guild is located and runs back toward the fire hall. 

Painter Jeff Crawford, who did the center mural of a parrot eating a strawberry, said the idea came to him during walks through the alley and wanting to make the wall more inviting. Crawford was one of the artists who worked on the murals at Milton Coffee Roastery on Lavinia Street, and two of the artists from that project, Crawford and Michael Ng, worked on the Strawberry Alley mural. The third mural was painted by former Councilwoman Randi Meredith.

Crawford said the main issue was waiting for the weather, and despite a chilly early May, the murals were painted over a three-day period. 

Meredith said she drew hers out on a sheet of paper and then scaled it up, while Crawford came up with his drawing freehand. Crawford said a parrot was the first thing he thought of, while Meredith’s inspiration was both the name of the street and a love of drawing cute details, such as the Mary Jane shoes on the strawberry. 

Ng’s mural, of a strawberry in an easy chair, was inspired by Milton Glaser’s “Therapy With A Tomato” work.