One wall of the mural painted by Max Reynolds and Juan Camargo. Credit: Konner Barr | Communications Manager for TBDBITL
Nestled deep inside the Ohio Stadium, strokes of paint are coming together to create a representative composition of The Best Damn Band in the Land, or TBDBITL.
The mural was created by Max Reynolds, a fifth-year pursuing a bachelor’s in fine arts with a specialization in drawing and painting, in collaboration with fourth-year colleague Juan Camargo, and is located at the Steinbrenner Band Center on the east side of the stadium. Reynolds said although another mural previously occupied the space, he believes this reinvention — which is projected to be completed by January — will reflect the band in a far more accurate manner.
“It was all white men,” Reynolds said. “There wasn’t really good instrument representation [and] race representation.”
Reynolds said he spent five years as a drummer for TBDBITL, allowing him to make meaningful connections that have made the new hand-painted mural possible.
“They reached out to me in May of 2022 and asked if I would be interested in redesigning this space,” Reynolds said. “I came to them and was like, ‘Well, let’s just paint over the mural and do a new mural,’ and they really liked that idea, and they kind of gave me creative freedom.”
Reynolds said the mural encompasses four walls and incorporates a modern art style, which contrasts the original painting’s antiquated elements.
“It feels a little bit more 21st century and has a lot more color to it,” Reynolds said. “The biggest thing is it incorporates race, it incorporates women, it incorporates different instrument groups.”
Reynolds said the mural is meant to subtly portray a game day narrative at the ’Shoe, starting with the pregame activities and progressing to the third quarter.
“I really wanted to have a flow to it,” Reynolds said. “I sourced pictures and different photographs from different years and just kind of collaged them together.”
Konner Barr, the communications manager for TBDBITL, said Reynolds’ design has inspired the band’s wider community.
“It’s kind of [given] the band some new life, some new energy,” Barr said. “The last mural was painted in 2010, and so I think the refresh has really stirred up some excitement around the band.”
Barr said while both murals have positive qualities in their own respective designs, Reynolds’ rendition brings new life to the walls through pops of vivid color that steep their way into viewers’ hearts.
“This one deals more with some different color shadowing and some big design lettermark work,” Barr said. “I think it’s a cool representation of where the band is at now. We continue to be innovative and not only in our performances but also in the way that we are trying to represent ourselves to the community.”
Barr said this work will impact not only the band’s members but also the multitude of other individuals who are able to take in the painting through stadium tours.
“Each part of that tour will come through the band center, and at the bottom of the band center doors they always stop and just talk about the band center,” Barr said. “So, that is a large impact that these murals will have on the community. There are many sets of eyes being able to see these paintings now.”
Barr said he recognizes how the mural is a pure embodiment of TBDBITL.
“It truly does characterize our marching band, and it shows us in all of our glory,” Barr said.
