Photo Provided St Clairsville Recreation Director Eric Gay, Service Director assistant Elaina Moscato, Councilman Lucien Murzyn, Mayor’s assistant, Jenn McMillen, Unified Marketing & Community Development Executive Don Feenerty, art show judge Roz Murzyn, and Mayor Kathryn Thalman.

ST. CLAIRSVILLE — A community art show is set to take place later this month at the Unified Jr. Rec Center in St. Clairsville.

The theme of the show is “Animals and Nature.” Participation is open to artists ages 18 and older who reside within a 20-mile radius of St. Clairsville. The enrollment deadline is Sept. 19 at 4:30 p.m. Artwork drop-off will take place on September 29-30 from 4-7 p.m. Public viewing will be held October 1-2 from 5-9 p.m. at the Unified Jr. Rec Center. A ribbon award presentation is scheduled for Friday, Oct. 3, from 6:30 to 9 p.m.

“Art is incredibly important to a community,” Mayor Kathryn Thalman said.

An artist herself since childhood, Thalman values the arts and the need for artistic venues. Although her priorities as mayor have included many initiatives for the public good, encouraging and enriching the arts in St. Clairsville has always been high on her list.

To help bring this vision to fruition, Thalman enlisted the help of longtime friend and Ohio Valley artist Don Feenerty.

“Don and I entered the art world at about the same time more than half a lifetime ago,” Thalman said. “In those days, there was a wonderful community art show held every year by the now-defunct Valley Art Association, and I want to provide a similar opportunity for artists to showcase their work and gather with fellow artists.”

Feenerty — who worked for 35 years as a professional commercial photographer and served as an adjunct professor of art and communications at West Liberty University, West Virginia Northern Community College and Mt. de Chantal Visitation Academy – agreed to co-lead the initiative.

“Those early art shows where my work hung alongside Kathryn’s served as a launching pad for my career. They encouraged me to trust myself as an artist and creative,” Feenerty said. “When the mayor first mentioned the idea of elevating the arts in the St. Clairsville area more than a year ago, and told me she wanted to start with an art show, I quickly agreed.”

The judging panel for the show will include Don Feenerty, Keven Ferren, and Roz Murcien. Accepted media include painting oil, acrylic, watercolor, gouache, photography, drawing ink, pen, colored pencil, mixed, sculpture small or medium, and mixed media or collage in two-dimensional or shallow relief formats.

“Unified Bank has agreed to sponsor the St. Clairsville Art Show,” Thalman said. “I also want to credit St. Clairsville city employees, executive assistant/mayor’s court clerk Elaina Moscato, and HR/service director assistant Jennifer McMillen, for their dedication and hard work in getting this show off the ground. They were responsible for laying out the criteria, creating the application forms, and promoting the show on the St Clairsville website. We wouldn’t have gotten this far without them,” Thalman added.

Information and forms can be found at www.stclairsville.com under the “Upcoming Events” section.