Painting the Town!

Selected local artists and artist teams will be busy painting the town for the city's second annual Dumpster Art public art project on Saturday, Sept. 23, beginning at 9 a.m. This project—a collaboration between the City of Valdosta, Valdosta Main Street, the Annette Howell Turner Center for the Arts, and the Public Arts Advisory Committee—will transform four downtown dumpsters into public pieces of art.

The public is invited to watch the dumpster transformation in the Valdosta City Hall Annex parking lot, on Valley Street:

• About the Artist: Dumpster #1 will be painted by an artist team employed at Barnes Healthcare Services and led by Karen Lewis, a Fine Arts graduate of Valdosta State University. The team is called "Charlie's Angels," named after Charlie Barnes III, owner of Barnes Healthcare Services. The team will capture the spirit of life in the Azalea City, including our Winnersville tradition, Moody AFB, historic downtown and the railroad industry.
• About the Artist: Dumpster #2 will be painted by local native and Lowndes High School alumna Logan Lott. Lott, now a fine arts major at Valdosta State University, will capture the beauty of the Winnersville Classic football game, painting a symbolic scene of the people from all walks of life who come together to celebrate community and enjoy tradition.
• About the Artist: Dumpster #3 will be painted by landscape architect Katherine Melcher of Alapaha. Melcher's design features a sunrise peeking through a forest of beautiful Longleaf Pines. The Longleaf Pine is one of Valdosta's only truly native trees, seen in certain places around the city such as Valdosta State University. They are slow growing, tall and strong crop trees that were replaced over the years with faster-growing trees that could produce and provide more shade and lumber.
• About the Artist: A fourth dumpster will be painted during the week of Sept. 25-29 by Lowndes Middle School's Art program, led by Art Educator Maysha Pate. Pate and her student artists will create a visual of Valdosta's history that will feature agriculture and other local images that citizens of our community will identify with and embrace. Dumpster #4 will be placed in the downtown area for all to enjoy by the end of September.

The artistic work will be accomplished onsite Saturday, Sept. 23, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., with the exception of dumpster #4. The public is invited to view the creation of the art, interact with the artists, and enjoy the event in beautiful downtown. Dumpsters #1-3 will permanently reside at Barnes Healthcare, 306 North, and Valdosta Fire Station #1—all located in beautiful downtown Valdosta, and the fourth location will be announced at a later date. The display of these public art pieces will provide beautiful visuals for downtown visitors, while also giving significant exposure for the artists.

Paints and supplies were generously provided by Whitehead Industrial Company, also located in downtown Valdosta. Dumpsters were steam cleaned by the Valdosta Public Works Department and will receive a coat of primer and base paint by the Valdosta Youth Council members prior to the start of artists' work.

The public is encouraged to attend the event. Contact Valdosta Public Information Officer Sementha Mathews at 229-259-3548 for more details or view event info at www.valdostacity.com.