The Port Clinton Area Chamber of Commerce hosted a ribbon cutting for Port Clinton Artists’ Club’s Jersey Barriers Project on July 11. (Submitted photo)

BY SHERI TRUSTY

Next to the music stage in The District in downtown Port Clinton sits a colorful Jersey barrier depicting a whimsical, local beach scene that was painted by 12-year-old Lea Casados. Casados, who is the youngest member of the Port Clinton Artists’ Club (PCAC), painted the artwork as part of the group’s Jersey Barriers Project. Several downtown barriers were painted by club members.

“I was asked to help, and then they asked me if I could do my own,” Casados said. “I made it like the beach right here, and I added different things.”

The scene shows Put-in-Bay in the distance, and several seagulls are hidden throughout for onlookers to find. It took Casados about seven hours to complete the work.

“I was thinking about other paintings that have things hidden when I made this,” she said.

Lea Casados, 12, signs her name to her artwork on a downtown Port Clinton Jersey barrier. (Photo by Sheri Trusty)

The Jersey barriers are placed in downtown Port Clinton each summer to cordon off the area to create The District, a casual area for eating, drinking, listening to live music and playing games like cornhole. The District is an entertainment hotspot for locals and tourists. The Jersey Barriers Project was organized by PCAC’s Philanthropy Committee, which is headed by Michelle Gregorek. The committee was formed to find ways to give back to the community through public, creative ways.

“I’ve lived in many different states and never experienced the amount of talent in one space,” Gregorek said. “There are so many artists here, but not much art in the city.”

PCAC provided the paint for the project and gave the artists a small stipend for their work.

“We wanted to give them something because artists are asked so often to do things for free,” Gregorek said. “We worked with Main Street Port Clinton on this, and the city was very helpful. They let us paint some of them inside the city garage. Some were painted on site.”

Lea Casados sits atop the Jersey barrier she painted. Casados is the youngest member of Port Clinton Artists’ Club. (Photo by Sheri Trusty)

The idea for the Jersey Barriers Project was suggested by Port Clinton Mayor Mike Snider, who is on a constant search for ways to improve the city.

“The mayor asked if we could get artists to paint the barriers,” Gregorek said. “This was the mayor’s idea, of course.”

The Port Clinton Area Chamber of Commerce hosted a ribbon cutting for the Jersey Barriers Project on July 11. The principal artists on the project were Rebecca Booth, Marsha Gray Carrington, Monette Garn, Diane Chaplin, Jeanne Morgan, Patty Wildman and Casados.

Thanks to the Port Clinton Artists’ Club, The District in downtown Port Clinton is filled with original works of art painted on Jersey barriers. (Photo by Sheri Trusty)

Eighty-four-year-old Alice Holly was one of the artist contributors who assisted the principal artists. Her mother was an original member of PCAC, which was formed in 1956. Holly joined in 1993, after she retired from teaching.

“I did no art before then,” she said. “I started with copper enameling, and right now, I’m into pastels. We do everything in Port Clinton Artists’ Club – oils, watercolors, all kinds of crafts.”

The club is accepting new members of all skill levels. For more information on PCAC, visit www.portclintonartistsclub.com.