Heritage Square was once a dirt parking lot. Paul Jones, a city engineer (and father of FFT owner Nick Jones), played a major role in transforming it into the quasi-amphitheater and gathering space it is today.

The square sits at the intersection of Aspen Avenue and Leroux Street, named for the Leroux family who were among Flagstaff's earliest settlers. Effie Leroux's name appears in the mural's title as a nod to this history.

Joe Sorren grew up in Flagstaff and earned his BFA from Northern Arizona University in 1993. He works in the American Pop Surrealism tradition, creating dreamlike compositions that feel grounded and weightless at the same time.

"Every composition should have a hero or a star," Sorren has said. The Veridic Garden is his love letter to Flagstaff. The word "veridic" means truthful, and the mural layers references to Klimt, Picasso, and Guernica into a distinctly Flagstaff scene.

The painting inspired a friend to write an entire novel. That detail alone tells you something about the emotional depth of Sorren's work. Your guide Jamie will tell you the rest, including the details you can only see up close.