BROOKHAVEN — Saul Maurer is no stranger to Brookhaven. His work has transformed the downtown area into a gallery of murals, signs and business fronts. 

Betty’s Eat Shop is the newest addition to the portfolio Monday. 

Maurer’s hands painted a weathered mural saying “EAT SHOP,” on the front of the building. Three simple colors, brick, off-white and black went into the work of art. Before Sunday, the business front was plain brick. 

“It is all addition and subtraction at this point to get the weathered look,” Maurer said. “This sign had not been there before. I used acrylic latex paint. It lasts forever and fades in the sunlight. The UV light the mural will get from sunrises in the summertime will help mellow it out even more.” 

Maurer said he started working on the mural Sunday by getting the bones of the sign worked out. Monday’s work was tweaking the details to get the look he desired. Every once in a while, Maurer would take a look at a picture in his hands and go back to adding layers of paint. 

He said the picture was a photograph of weathered brick taken elsewhere. It helps inspire his work. Maurer turned his focus back to the fine details of the mural. 

Maurer was born in Charleston, South Carolina. He attended the John McCrady School of Art in New Orleans and Parsons School of Design in New York City. The artist lives is in McComb. 

Brookhaven residents may recognize his light blue 1974 Datsun pickup truck. He said there was nothing special about the truck other than it was old and he didn’t mind getting paint on it. 

Betty’s Eat Shop is located at 126 S. Whitworth Avenue.