Join Firehouse Art Center (FAC) educators and volunteers as they inspire and guide Norman’s children to express their thoughts and feelings about love, hope, and peace through the creation of a community public art installation this Friday. The Children’s Art Wall – Love, Hope, Peace, a free visual arts event hosted by the FAC and sponsored by the Norman Arts Council and Republic Bank & Trust, will be created during pre-screening activities at Norman Parks & Recreation’s Outdoor Movie Series in Lions Park on both September 20 and October 4, 2019. Activities begin at 6 PM.

The FAC will have opportunities for 80 children to paint their individual concepts of love, hope, and peace on the Art Wall, helping to create a final art wall that shows our community's embrace of unity and inclusion. Participants ages 5 – 14 will sign up for a designated space on the night of the event. At the conclusion of the two nights, Lions Park will feature a new collaborative 40’ mural that conveys Norman’s shared positive community values.

Participating children ages 5 - 14 will be entered into a scholarship competition for the FAC's Art After School program. Merit scholarships, valued at $810 total, will be awarded to nine children. Award winners will be those artists whose works best exemplify the project’s goals of fostering tolerance and acceptance through the community values of of love, hope, and peace, and who demonstrate the importance of creativity and personal expression through art. This special visual arts opportunity is made possible by the Norman Arts Council Sudden Opportunity Support, Norman Parks & Recreation, Republic Bank & Trust, and the City of Norman.

The Firehouse Art Center (FAC) is funded in part by select grants from the Oklahoma Arts Council, the Norman Arts Council, the National Endowment for the Arts, and the City of Norman, as well as corporate sponsorship from Republic Bank & Trust and Fowler Automotive. The FAC’s programming would not be possible without the support of individual donors and memberships.