A mural by the late musician Daniel Johnston plastered on the side of a former University of Texas dorm has been preserved by the company that purchased and demolished the building. Photo courtesy of Estate of Daniel Johnston/Facebook
April 15 (UPI) — A mural by the late musician Daniel Johnston plastered on the side of a former University of Texas dorm has been preserved by the company that purchased and demolished the building.
Johnston, a folk singer who amassed an epic cult following in the 1980s and 1990s after passing out his hand-made tapes, never quite achieved commercial success because of complications from his declining mental health.
However, his do-it-yourself marketing and charisma made him a staple in the Austin, Texas, music scene and he has been considered an influence by many musicians. His storied career and struggles with mental illness were depicted in the 2005 documentary The Devil and Daniel Johnston.
The documentary helped rekindle Johnston’s popularity, particularly sparking interest in his visual art and comic-book-inspired illustrations.
In 2004, the year before the documentary was released, Johnston completed the mural featuring his infamous frog character saying “Hi, How Are You” on the side of UT’s Goodall Wooten Building. The mural was modeled after the cover art he drew for his first album, titled “Hi, How Are You.”
The building was purchased by the college apartment developer American Campus Communities from the university in 2018, according to the campus’ student newspaper The Daily Texan.
Johnston died from a suspected heart attack in 2019, the year after the building was sold.
Photos posted by Daniel Johnston’s estate to Facebook show that the building has since been razed– though American Campus has preserved the wall the mural was painted on.
“Don’t Worry!!! We have been insured by the owners of the building that Daniel’s beloved Hi How Are You mural in Austin, Texas, will be preserved and protected during their construction,” Jonhston’s Facebook page wrote in the post. “They are huge Daniel fans as well!!!!”
Gina Cowart, American Campus senior vice president, said in an emailed statement to The Daily Texan that the company considers the preservation of the mural an effort to improve the mental well-being of students who will live in new apartments that will be built at the site.
Cowart also serves as a board member for the Hi, How Are You Project — a nonprofit organization created by Johnston and his family before his death to destigmatize mental health struggles.
As reported by The Daily Texan, the mural has become an iconic symbol in Austin for mental health awareness.
