A group of Iowa State students and two faculty advisers have been working countless hours on a “center stage” display for the announcement of the World’s Food Prize winner on Oct. 15.

“[The World’s Food Prize] started in 1986,” said Brian Meyer, communications specialist for Agriculture Information Services.

“There is no Nobel Peace Prize for people in food or agriculture, so this program was developed by Norman Borlock,” he said.

Meyer said the prize goes to people around the globe who provide quality, quantity or availability of food to the world.

“Every year, the prize is awarded first in Washington, D.C. on Oct. 13, and then they trek to Iowa on the 15th to hold an awards ceremony,” Meyer said.

“It’s held in Des Moines because the Ruan Corporation in Iowa is a major sponsor for the prize,” he said.

Meyer said the prize amounts to about $250,000.

“It’s really a main thing for people who work in food or agriculture,” he said.

Meyer said the prize ties into ISU because two professors, Brenda Jones and John Weinkein, associate professors of art and design, proposed a project to commemorate the prize.

“[The project is] a wonderful thing,” Jones said. “There are two banners — both for the World’s Food Prize.

“They’re not just paintings, they’re murals,” she said.

The two murals are currently on display in the Atrium of the Design Building near Room 181, directly across from the design office.

“If students can find the design office, they can find the murals,” Weinkein said.

He said the second mural was scheduled to be completed late Sunday night.

“There is a group of students who have been working on this project with [Jones] and I,” Weinkein said. “We placed a call out for students who expressed an interest in the project and were looking for a short term, intense commitment.”

Weinkein said the group has been putting in long hours.

“We have basically been here every night after midnight and several nights until 2 or 3 a.m.,” Weinkein said.

Although the two murals are commemorating the same idea, he said they have quite different themes.

“The World’s Food Prize murals are 20 by 24 feet,” Weinkein said. “They are painted on muslin with acrylic paint. The first of the banners focuses more on tradition and the other is more abstract, contemporary.”

Weinkein said the content of the murals will be a surprise for the winner of the award.

“I can tell you that they honor this year’s recipient,” he said. “The award will go to the person this year to have the greatest contribution for world food production.”

Students who participated in the production of the mural are Sean Holdridge, senior in art and design; Meredith Chambers, junior in art and design; Jessica Gibson, junior in art and design; Jennifer Johansen, senior in biological/pre-medicine illustration; Jennifer Wildes, senior in biological/pre-medicine illustration; Solomon Pech, senior in art and design; Robert Parr, junior in art and design; John Anderson, junior in graphic design; Chad Wielate and Chin-Fong Lau.

The murals will be on display in the Atrium of the Design Building until mid-October.