Check out the design for upcoming crosswalk art project in downtown Henderson

HENDERSON, Ky. - The community's budding public art movement is expected to soon give a makeover to the most prominent crosswalk in downtown Henderson.

"We're wanting to paint the crosswalk that leads from the Sidwalk Café over to The Perch," explained Ohio Valley Art League Executive Director Jordyn Myracle.

"This is kind of an idea that we had that was generated in the beginning when we first started working on the mural, actually."

Last year, The Perch pocket park on the 200 block of Second Street was constructed and a large mural -- the first of its kind here -- was completed on the huge, blank brick wall of an adjacent building.

"In our eyes it's an extension and part" of that project, Myracle said. "You don't want to have too much clashing. So we think the design will really flow nicely with the mural and with the surrounding area. We want it to look like a unified attraction."

Crosswalk art?

Myracle showed off a mock-up of the design Tuesday night at Tuesday's Henderson City Commission meeting. The artwork carries over the sense of growth, flowers and nature from the nearby mural.

"The thick white lines on the crosswalk will all stay in place and the design will basically be split up between those ... cut into each of those sections," she explained earlier to The Gleaner.

She said crosswalk designs are a common form of public art all over the world, and suggested that anyone interested can see the amazing variety by Googling or looking on Pinterest for "crosswalk art."

To top it off, this will be a project carried out by members of the local community, no matter what their level of artistic ability.

Myracle said the project will be a "paint by numbers" design, meaning it will be stenciled out in advance. Anyone who wants to take part will be able to come downtown, pick up a paint brush and complete a portion.

"It will be a one- or two-day community paint day ... You'll pick a number and grab the color and you'll be painting."

There will be a chance for touch-ups before the artwork -- made to be walked on and driven over -- is sealed.

Idea blooms

Much of the push behind the creation of the downtown mural can be credited to a small local group that has come to call themselves "The Cacti" -- for their ability to thrive and grow, even under adverse conditions.

That informal group is made up of Myracle, Downtown Henderson Partnership chief Lindsay Locasto, local tourist commission head Abby Dixon, city Public Information Officer Donna Stinnett and local Board of Realtors executive Missy Vanderpool.

As plans for the mural were coming along, Myracle explained, "We were all in our creative zone, I guess you could say, and we were thinking of everything and anything about how we could get the community involved."

That's when talk of a crosswalk project -- or several -- began.

"We knew that was going to be on the back burner," Myracle said, but the group recently "reconvened and started getting our momentum back up in the whole area of community art and engagement."

She said the crosswalk project doesn't involve any tax money. It's being made possible with $500 in seed money from Chase Fulcher and $500 from a grant.

The design work was done by Vanderpool's mother, retired Henderson County resident Kathy Duncan.

"It'll just brighten up the area," Myracle said. "And we thought it would be another good, creative, place-making initiative. And it'll kind of prove that public art can be as small as you want it. Not everything has to be a huge endeavor. This can prove that small things can take place and can really change up the scenery and beautify downtown without it having to be a month-long mural on a 1,000-square-foot wall."

She said they have their eye on other crosswalks as well, on Main Street and Water Street.

"Maybe we can eventually cover the whole downtown area that would be really cool.

"We have so many visitors from all the free festivals that Henderson has. We get so many people here. And I think that's really a real attraction to them whenever they see a growing arts community. It shows our culture and our diversity, it shows who we are and I think people are really impressed that a community that is so small has so much to offer in all aspects."

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