Help make a new Obama mural after vandalism

Vandals threw red paint on the mural of President Barack Obama facing The Breakfast Klub restaurant sometime early Monday (Courtesy photo, The Breakfast Klub) Vandals threw red paint on the mural of President Barack Obama facing The Breakfast Klub restaurant sometime early Monday (Courtesy photo, The Breakfast Klub) Photo: Handout Photo: Handout Image 1 of / 9 Caption Close Help make a new Obama mural after vandalism 1 / 9 Back to Gallery

A defaced painting of President Barack Obama, across the street from The Breakfast Klub restaurant in midtown, will be redone Tuesday evening with a new design, said the original artist, Reginald C. Adams.

And the public is invited to help.

"This evening, once it gets dark, I'm going to use an LCD projector to transfer the new design onto the wall," he said. "There's a method I use to engage nonartists in helping to create large-scale public art pieces, and I will use that process to help folks who are interested in helping us out."

The original mural, done during the presidential election campaign in 2008, was damaged sometime early Monday by vandals who threw red paint on the larger-than-life image across the street from the popular restaurant at Travis and Alabama.

Adams said he suspected that the perpetrators threw two paint-filled water balloons at the picture.

Marcus Davis, the restaurant owner, said he discovered the damage when he got to work about 7 a.m. Monday.

"When this happened it was a sad occasion, and yet there was some excitement there in terms of the opportunity it presents," Davis said. "Just as President Obama has not given up and has turned a negative into a positive, that's the example I will follow."

The restaurant will host a watch party during the presidential debate scheduled for 8-9:30 p.m. Tuesday. By the time it finishes, Adams is expected to have preparations well under way for the public to help him finish the new painting in a new design, Davis said.

"We want anybody in the community to come out," Davis said. "This is the opportunity to show we truly believe what we say we believe in. Whether you're Democrat or Republican, you should find this type of silliness and childish acts do not represent the America we saw we want or he America we say we are."