Noah Saterstrom does not usually have an audience when he paints.

And when he does, it usually isn’t an audience from his past.

But in the past week, Saterstrom has found himself in what he describes as an “interesting and surreal place.”

Outside his quiet Denver studio and with a canvas much bigger than usual, Saterstrom has been busy applying coats of paint to the courtyard walls of the new Turning Pages bookstore on Franklin Street.

And with every added layer of color, Saterstrom has been uncovering layers from his past and discovering new layers about the town in which he once lived.

“In part, this trip was about painting a mural, but in a way it’s been more about encountering all of the layers of Natchez,” Saterstrom said.

Over the past days, friends, family and bookstore patrons have crowded around the courtyard entrance to watch Saterstrom and his assistant, Braden Russell, transform the small claustrophobic space into a bright, colorful, expansive space.

The audience of onlookers is not something Saterstrom said he is used to.

“At any minute, anyone from my past could be walking in,” Saterstrom said as he continued painting Monday.

That sense of his past mixing with the present is something Saterstrom can only describe as like “time collapsing in on itself.”

It has been fifteen years since Saterstrom has spent any time in Natchez. Other than quick visits to see his grandmother, Margaret Wesley, or great aunt, Helen Rayne, the Cathedral graduate has spent most of his time pursuing his career as an artist outside his hometown.

Since graduating, Saterstrom studied art at Millsaps, Ole Miss and the Glasgow, Scotland, School of Art. After completing his masters in Scotland, Saterstrom worked in Asheville, N.C., and now works in Denver.

“I don’t think I have spent more than 48 hours in Natchez since I left,” Saterstrom said.

That changed when he was commissioned to paint the mural of St. Mary Cathedral through the trees of Memorial Park.

When bookstore owner Mary Emrick decided on a mural for the space, her daughter Mindy recommended Saterstrom, a friend since high school.

“I wanted the wall to disappear,” Emrick said.

It wasn’t long before Saterstrom was commissioned to do the piece and traveled down from Colorado to paint.

Saterstrom and Russell are painting two murals, one of St. Mary and the other a panoramic view of the Mississippi River.

The St. Mary piece is inspired by a Henry Norman photo of the church taken from Memorial Park. Because of trees that have grown since that time, the view is no longer there.

The Mississippi River piece is inspired by the view of the river from the Natchez City Cemetery.

After painting the mural, Saterstrom will return to his Denver studio to finish preparations for an exhibition of his work in New Orleans. His work will be on show May 5 at the Carol Robinson Gallery.