COLUMBUS, Ohio —Greater Columbus Arts Council (Arts Council) board member Mark Cain and his family have donated funding to support two public murals on the East Side of Columbus, in honor of Cain’s mother, painter and arts educator Nina Smoot-Cain, who passed away in 2019.
“The Cain family is thankful that the donations made honoring Nina Smoot-Cain’s legacy have made the awarded grants possible,” said Mark Cain.
Through the grants, Columbus artist Scot Kaplan will be awarded a Neighborhoods Arts Connection Fellowship in the amount of $15,000, to upgrade the pedestrian tunnels under the Norfolk and Western Railway connecting the Woodland Park and Eastgate neighborhoods. Kaplan’s proposal aims to brighten the tunnels using saturated color illumination and visual imagery.
In addition, $10,000 will be awarded to Maroon Arts Group and $5,000 to TRANSIT ARTS for a collaborative mural project at East High School or in the nearby neighborhood. The neighborhood was chosen for the project because Smoot-Cain attended East High School.
The grants are supported in part by funds collected from the sale of Smoot-Cain’s artwork and donations to her in-memoriam fund through the Arts Council. More information on the fund can be found at gcac.org/nina-smoot-cain-donations.
Timelines have not been finalized, but both projects should be completed by early September, 2023.
Mission of the Greater Columbus Arts Council: To support and advance the arts and cultural fabric of Columbus. www.gcac.org
The Greater Columbus Arts Council receives major financial support from the City of Columbus, Franklin County Commissioners and the Ohio Arts Council.
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CONTACT: Jami Goldstein
(614) 221-8492
jgoldstein@gcac.org
