NORKA

In the summer of 2026, Art x Love removed the AKRON II mural from its temporary home at 211 W Market Street, where it had been proudly displayed since 2019. The building was showing signs of neglect and the mural needed significant touchups after 7 years direct sun exposure.

We brought AKRON II back to our studio, where our team worked with Tu-Anh “Hazel” Le, a visual art intern from Denison University, to restore the mural panels. We sanded and scraped off the flaking paint, added fresh primer, repainted each panel, and then finished each one with an anti-graffiti coating.

From the very beginning of the restoration process we started wondering where the mural would live next and what kind of impact it would have. Akron’s historic Highland Square neighborhood had been in the news with a new generation of entrepreneurs taking over management of the neighborhood’s iconic ice-cream parlor, Mary Coyle’s. Part of the new ownership team include NORKA Beverage, the famous cane sugar soda company that was born in Akron in 1924. We thought it would be pretty cool and kind of fun to flip the panels around and reached out to NORKA to see if they would cover the cost of materials for the mural’s restoration. NORKA loved the idea and agreed.

While the mural was being restored, we started exploring potential locations for display and contacted the family that owns and runs the famous Highland Theatre. They were kindly willing to let us install the mural on the side of the theatre, facing the busy Walgreens parking lot and Mustard Seed Market & Restaurant. From this location, more than 13,000 people will see the mural every day.