Abigail Smith (L) and Chelsea Waltermire attended First Friday to talk about their art currently on display in downtown Warsaw. InkFreeNews photo by Dan Spalding.

By Dan Spalding
InkFreeNews

WARSAW – Two young budding and talented artists said they’re excited to have some of their work on display in downtown Warsaw.

Abigail Smith, of Warsaw, and Chelsea Waltermire, of Muncie, were two of the three artists to participate in the temporary art display organized by the Warsaw Public Arts Commission.

Along with Sunday Mahaja (who was unavailable to attend Friday), the three provided more than a dozen pieces of art for Warsaw’s newest temporary art displays in the downtown.

On Friday, Smith and Waltermire attended Warsaw’s Frist Friday and talked with visitors about their work, much of which also promotes the community’s amenities.

You can find all of the artwork and more at the All Things Art website here.

Smith, 23, a Warsaw Community High School graduate, provided four posters and a sculpture that can be found in the alley behind city hall. The posters are spread around the downtown and are modeled after posters that promoted the London Underground in the 1920s.

The posters promote Center Lake, the Beyer Farm Trail, Central Park and the Biblical Gardens, but each has a slightly different style.

She visited the locations, took photos and then recreated the photos using Adobe Photoshop.

“I started with one and kind of found my style along the way,” Smith said.

She just finished her second year at Purdue University where she’s studying visual graphic design, art history and management.

“I realized art would allow me to develop my passions more and give me a careeer path that would be more conducive to having fun and fulfilling my passion,” Smith said.

Waltermire, 22, of Muncie, recently graduated with a studio art degree from Manchester University.

She said she learned of the opportunity through a professor, but said she was unsure what she would do until about a week before the deadline.

What came together are two wooden frames side by side that reads “Warsaw” and “Indiana,”  accented with a series of small wood and ceramic plates below.

The artwork sits in a flower bed along Center Street. She added metal flowers in the middle.

Her professor came up with the concept.

“I had to drive back and forth from Muncie to Manchester like about eight times to the ceramic studio at school,” she said.

She got the idea of incorporating metal into the project from her boyfriend.

“It was very challenging but I’m very happy with it,” Waltermire said.

The art came together in the public art commission’s first attempt with a “request for proposals” directed toward artists.

“The artists exceeded our expectations,” said Suzie Light, a chief organizer of the project for the arts commission.

The display is the latest effort by the Warsaw Public Arts Commission to add more artwork to the downtown and parks.

“We’re making a dent,” Light said about their mission.

Meanwhile, First Friday featured a hometown picnic theme with free watermelon and hotdogs.

Backwater, a southern rock band, provided entertainment and law enforcement had a collection of emergency vehicles on display.

Despite a few sprinkles, First Friday had a nice turnout on July 1 in Warsaw.

Backwater provided entertainment Friday night in downtown Warsaw.

Old National Bank employees Rebecca Johnson (L) and Maria Munoz helped distribute free watermelon at the festival Friday night.

A large flag was on display at the corner of Center and Buffalo streets.