Art That Glows: Meet the Brothers Who Bring Monster Mini
Golf to Life
Step inside a Monster Mini Golf location and the artwork is impossible to miss. Glowing characters fill the walls, and each course incorporates details that make it feel connected to its community. Behind nearly all of those hand-painted worlds are two brothers: Corey and Craig Marier
The brothers have painted every Monster Mini Golf location built since 2006, with the exception of the original course in Danielson, Connecticut. In recognition of National Arts in Education Week, Monster Mini Golf is celebrating their 20-year creative partnership and the unexpected career that grew from their artistic talents
A Partnership That Started With a Sketchbook
Born and raised in Webster, Massachusetts, Corey and Craig have lived in Connecticut for nearly three decades. Corey now resides in Putnam, while Craig lives in Danielson, the community where Monster Mini Golf first began.
Their path to painting together was not carefully planned. One brother initially handled the artwork while the other helped prepare the spaces, including painting the walls black to create the backdrop for the fluorescent designs. Then, management discovered his sketchbook.
The drawings revealed that artistic talent ran in the family. What began as a supporting role soon developed into a creative partnership, setting the brothers on a path that would take them to nearly every Monster Mini Golf location built over the next 20 years.
Together, they helped establish an artistic style that remains central to the brand today.
Eight Weeks from Concept to Completion
Long before the brothers even pick up a paintbrush, the artwork in each Monster Mini Golf location takes about eight weeks from concept to finish. The process includes town research, brainstorming meetings, sketching designs, and then painting full-size canvas panels. The murals are built on a scale that matches the experience around them. Some panels measure about 11 feet wide and 9 feet high; larger pieces can reach 16 feet wide and 9 feet high.
Across those canvases, Corey and Craig bring Monster Mini Golf’s characters into scenes inspired by the surrounding community. Local landmarks, history, wildlife, culture, and recognizable personalities can all become part of the story, giving guests something new to discover at every location.
The Pieces That Stay With Them
After two decades of painting courses, the brothers have a long list of memorable projects.
“Picking a single favorite piece is almost like choosing a favorite child,” Craig wrote on behalf of himself and Corey. “It’s impossible to pin it on one only.”
Among the standouts is a video game museum mural spanning an entire wall. It shows Monster Mini Golf mascots Stella and Jawbone moving through different eras of videogames and becoming part of the gameplay along the way.
A more recent forest adventure park scene features actor Jesse Plemons, who Craig said was from the area, swinging through a rope course alongside approximately a dozen species of local wildlife. The brothers enjoyed painting its unusual perspective and sense of action.
Their own interests also find their way into the work. “We are both huge Star Wars fans,” Craig wrote, recalling a piece featuring James Earl Jones as Darth Vader and Luke giving him a Father’s Day tie labeled “Galaxy’s Best Dad.”
The examples show how much personality Corey and Craig bring to each course. Their murals can celebrate a community, tell a playful story, or simply make guests pause and look a little closer.
A Creative Career Built One Course at a Time
Corey and Craig’s story is a reminder that artistic ability can open doors in unexpected places. A sketchbook spotted at work led to a partnership that has lasted 20 years and helped define the experience inside Monster Mini Golf locations across the country.
National Arts in Education Week recognizes the role of the arts in helping people develop creativity, communication, and new ways of seeing the world. For the Marier brothers, those abilities became the foundation of a career that allows thousands of Monster Mini Golf guests to step inside their imagination.
The next time you play a Monster Mini Golf course, take a closer look at the walls. Somewhere among the glowing monsters and locally inspired scenes is a piece of Corey and Craig’s story.
