After years of providing professional-grade art supplies, gallery pieces, and unique greeting cards, Uncle Eli’s Artist Marketplace and Gift Emporium on Beaver Avenue is asking the public for help designing a new mural outside of the shop.

People of all skills and backgrounds are encouraged to come up with an original idea for the mural.

Those who are interested should first go through Angela Regas, a manager at Uncle Eli’s. From there, she will put you in touch with Douglas Albert, the owner.

The staff is asking that the mural depict the store’s unique essence.

“I want it to be whimsical, peculiar, attention-grabbing, and adventurous.” Albert said. “I want somebody who will draw outside of the lines.”

Artists are encouraged to share their own vision for the piece with inspiration from iconic pieces of art throughout history.

An important element of past Uncle Eli’s’ murals is a feature of Mona Lisa. It adds an enigmatic and mysterious element to both the mural and the store and has made an appearance in each of the past murals.

Over the years, there have been five murals outside of Uncle Eli’s. The current mural has been on display for almost the last decade.

The current mural is circus-themed. It symbolizes variety, excitement, and innocence, all of which are components of the shop itself.

The mural is not supposed to be an advertisement for the store. Rather, Albert wants an artist to create a depiction that represents the feelings that people get when they enter Uncle Eli’s.