Artist: Laurie Lunsford

Project Title: Dance!

Location: Westside Park at Tillotson & White River Blvd

Project Statement: Music and movement are a beautiful form of creativity. Moving to music projects joy. Last year, I was at a concert at Canan Commons and was feeling the joy as I watched children flowing to the front stage to move to the music. I very quickly drew the forms as they moved in and out and around one another. My purpose for this project is to bring a smile to anyone who sees it. I also believe that children represent hope and that they can be recognized for what they bring to our community.

Artist Bio: Art has been an integral part of my life since the time I painted the kitchen appliances with watercolor as a three-year-old. I am an elementary school art teacher and fin that children have creative ideas that are fresh and alive. I am now teaching art at St. Lawrence School. I write and illustrate children’s picture books. My fourth book, “Enough is Enough” has recently been launched. For ten years, I was an interactive Arts Specialist with Alzheimer’s patients and started programs in three different nursing homes in Muncie. I also painted several murals in nursing homes. Art has been an agent of healing for me over the years and has also been healing for those with whom I interact in the arts. Plein air painting is my favorite thing to do. You will find me with my sketch books on the greenway, the Redtail land preserves painting nature. I find people to draw at outdoor concerts, homeless shelters, nursing homes, and parks, wherever people gather. I love painting portraits. I am part of a group of plein air artists who gather to paint together every Wednesday. We are working together on a book that will represent all the Redtail properties through our art. I work in watercolor, pastels, and acrylics, and I am in love with color. I am a long-time Muncie resident. I love Muncie. I also love the arts that I am seeing around every corner.