Freshly painted tote bags hung in rows in the Haymarket on
Tuesday afternoon, like laundry drying on a clothesline.
Jacob Depenbusch of Lincoln used a woodcut to paint a J on his
bag outside the Haydon Art Center, his first stop in the Art
Triathlon --part of the festivities surrounding the Special
Olympics National Games.
"Beautiful. That's great," Jacob's mom, Vicki, told him while a
volunteer hung his bag on the line.
Then she steered the 11-year-old inside the gallery to create a
button.
Next up, the Lincoln Arts Council, then the Sheldon Museum of
Art, where trios of local artists were on hand to assist in
creating autograph books and "magic clay" creations.
Heather Thomas, education director at the Haydon, came up with
the event as a way to bring people together and make beautiful
things at the same time.
"It's been wonderful," she said while hanging bags and helping
visitors.
"We've had people from Michigan and Idaho, all over."
Special Olympic athletes and their families attended. Parents
with preschoolers. Older kids, like Jacob, whose passion is
art.
The soon-to-be Lux Middle School sixth-grader and his mom
planned to go to Sun Valley Lanes on Wednesday to watch his friends
compete in bowling.
"This is awesome to be able to support the Special Olympics and
for the visitors," Vicki Depenbusch said.
The pair departed for part two of their triathlon, Jacob with a
red button on his yellow shirt and toting a barely dried work of
art over his shoulder.
