At the heart of a beloved north Asheville woods sits a painted raccoon, the object of an unofficial scavenger hunt and an artistic ode to a viral short-spined raccoon named Jimothy.
Videos of Jimothy the raccoon appeared online in mid-July, after Seattle resident Kiana Hall noticed Jimothy and was struck by the raccoon’s unusual appearance. The video she posted on Instagram received millions of views, and in the weeks that followed, images of Jimothy became ubiquitous, even appearing on Google’s homepage and as a Dungeons and Dragons character.
After seeing Jimothy on social media, Asheville artist Spencer Beals was inspired.
“Jimothy was just having his moment,” he told the Citizen Times July 22.
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He decided to paint Jimothy and install the painting in a section of woods owned by UNC Asheville.
He said he had the idea at 6 p.m. on July 19. By 7 p.m., he was buying plywood, and he “pulled an all-nighter” painting the unusual looking raccoon.
“I hid him in the woods, and then the treasure hunt was afoot,” he said.
Beals was born near Seattle and has family in the Pacific Northwest, and he said that Jimothy struck a chord with him.
“All my family is out west, so it’s fun to see Jimothy has made his way over to Asheville,” he said.
Beals has designed maps intended to guide viewers to his painting.
“There’s definitely treasure at the end. I can’t ruin the surprise,” he said.
Beals also wrote a riddle intended to help viewers find Jimothy: “Stare at the map to stay on track. Jimothy is the GOAT. That’s all she wrote.”
The riddle is posted on a trail map Beals designed that sits in the section of woods known as Batland. Batland features multiple art installations with painted bats and other creatures.
Beals said that part of the reason he installed a depiction of Jimothy in the woods is to boost awareness of what the property offers the community.
UNC Asheville has received pushback from area residents over plans to develop the woods, known as the South Campus property, and the Millennial Campus Development Advisory Committee released recommendations July 20 that suggested the area as a “primary site for catalytic development.” The committee advised against controversial plans to develop a soccer stadium or performing arts center on the South Campus property, however.
“Jimothy is a fun way to get people to know about the forest, to get people to come in,” Beals said.
Beals said that he has a trail camera in the woods, and he has seen foxes, owls and even a bobcat in the footage. While he is friends with Save the Woods organizers, who want to maintain the forested property as a community resource, he considers himself an independent artist with “one degree of separation” from the movement.
“But we’re both aligned in wanting to see this forest be protected,” he said.
Reporting by Kara Fohner, Asheville Citizen Times / Asheville Citizen Times
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
