Jackson County, TN

Cookeville

Johnson Family Barn

When Ralph and Mary Johnson moved from Virginia to Cookeville, they didn’t describe themselves as fans of the University of Tennessee. In the decades since, the couple became such fans that their property now boasts “Everywhere You Look, UT.”

The Johnsons have held UT Knoxville football season tickets since moving to Tennessee in 1973. “Mary bleeds orange; if they’re on TV, she’s watching baseball, basketball or football,” said Ralph.

To showcase their devotion to the University of Tennessee, they requested the UT System use their barn on the Johnson Family Farm for the 60-foot-wide mural. The farm, once a site for a carpet business, now serves as a space where Mary crafts wooden signs and Ralph collects antiques and old cars.

During a trip to Knoxville for a football game, Mary spotted the Crossville mural along I-40, sparking her curiosity to research its meaning and ultimately decided to request one for their farm and Jackson County.

“We’re proud to be Tennessee fans and proud of what they’re doing right now,” said Ralph.

Located on Highway 290, which has almost 6,000 drivers a day, the Johnson Family Farm is also near Cummins Falls State Park, a popular tourist and college student destination.

The mural, painted by Michael Cooper in April 2024, marks county number 48 of the “Everywhere You Look, UT” campaign.

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224 Charles Haney Rd. Cookeville, TN 38501

Meet the Artist

Michael Cooper is well into his third decade of painting large-scale custom wall murals. He also provides decorative finishes, Venetian plasters, Trompe L’oeil and hand-painted large-scale graphics and signage.

Michael started Murals & More LLC in 1990 with his wife and business partner, Mickie, and since then he has designed and painted everything from small interior residential projects to enormous hotel interiors, massive exterior highway painting projects and fabulous Public Art installations.

Also an accomplished decorative painter, he has transformed many surfaces into amazing faux brick, intricate marble and classic Italian Plaster.

He is internationally renowned for his attention to detail and ability to create realistic and whimsical trompe l’oeil murals. People have simply been amazed at discovering what they thought was a series of wrought iron balconies or a clumsily placed ladder was actually a flat painted surface.

Even though his specialty is custom, large-scale wall murals and decorative finishes, Michael also has provided his clients with painted furniture, ceiling murals, floor cloths, backdrops, canvas murals and many other specialty items.

Michael Cooper
Owner and Lead Artist
Murals & More
615-591-2575 michael@muralsandmore.com fmuralsandmore.com