Norwalk Arts Center partnering with Artists Open Studio

Norwalk Arts Center is partnering with Artists Open Studio to promote both art and a clean community in Glam the Can, a public art project open to everyone in Huron County. "Thanks to a grant from Arts Midwest, we invite groups to celebrate their place in our community by painting 55-gallon trash cans," said Vanessa Cook, co-founder of NAC. "This is a great way to build community, have some fun with art and promote a clean environment." The City of Norwalk is donating 50 metal barrels for the project. Local professional artists Heidi Hovestadt and Summer Braddock will create individual designs for each group of up to eight members. They will also lead workshops to help the groups paint the cans, which will then be used anywhere in the community. Groups can sign up for the workshops at www.norwalkartscenter.org. Groups can choose from basic themes including music, sports, culture/heritage, patriotic, books, nature, floral, animals, sunshine, sweets/treats and abstract or geometric shapes. The artists can also include a group's logo or symbols to represent their interests. Arts Midwest is covering stipends for the artists, paint and materials costs. NAC and AOS are providing volunteers and organizing the project. "We hope to see many different groups joining in this project – veterans, senior citizens, teams, 4-H clubs, book clubs, scout troops, non-profits," MaryLisa Boose, NAC community outreach volunteer, said. "Everyone is invited so we are looking forward to 50 very different designs." Groups such as schools that need to have more than eight participants should contact Boose to discuss arrangements other than the scheduled workshops at nacartgrants@gmail or 419-708-4104. "This project is an amazing opportunity to beautify and enhance the presence of art in our local area," said Jackie Hug, AOS managing director. "It's exciting to engage community members in the process so that all might have the opportunity to feel the joy and fulfillment in creating together." Hug said the artists are open to using mixed media materials the groups provide such as fabric, paper and beads. "We want each group to have fun and showcase their interests in as creative a way as possible," she said. "This is a chance for the different groups in our community to really showcase what they believe in, to have some fun with art and to keep our communities clean with an artistic twist." Hovestadt said the project will bring all ages and backgrounds to the arts. "This project encourages beautiful creative expression and builds community, which will be something fun for all of us," she said. "It'll be lovely to see the cans around town and recognize the people and groups who put their art on them." "Glam the Can is not just a project," said Braddock. "It's a canvas of unity, where we are turning ordinary trash cans into a canvas of shared creativity and expression. I'm very much looking forward to this unique teaching experience and encouraging art within the community." Norwalk plans to use some of the cans in public parks. The Huron County Fairgrounds will use barrels painted by 4-H clubs. Groups from other areas in Huron County can use the barrels for any community function. "We are very excited with this first community art project," said Cook. "We hope it is just the first of many projects which celebrate the power of art in bringing people together."