Lee — The town is looking a bit more colorful these days after artist Cheyenne Renee added a mural to Main Street. The Covington, Va. native founded the 50in50 Project in the fall of 2021, with her goal being to paint one mural in a small town within each state by the end of 2025.
Renee’s trek began in June of 2022, and Lee marked her 11th stop in the project, with Morristown, Vt. next. The event was celebrated with a July 19 outdoor ceremony followed by a reception at Appetito .
“Lee was the chosen town for representing the state of Massachusetts as the gateway to the Berkshires,” said Lee Chamber of Commerce President Doug Bagnasco. With her passion for small town tourism, Renee said the program serves to highlight unique small communities and businesses across the country “that deserve more recognition.” Lee was nominated to serve as Massachusetts’ entry on Renee’s website by an individual who had visited October Mountain State Forest, followed by lunch in town, she said.
“It was memorable enough for them to think that it would make a really good small town for the project,” Renee said. Although she reached out to a few different locations in Massachusetts for the mural, Lee was the only town that responded and was motivated to feature the project. Renee began painting at 12 years old, with family members pushing her to pursue art “to make a little extra money on the side.
” Now, at the ripe old age of 24, art is her career after painting her first m.