Young painter creates Sisters Library mural

Twenty-one-year-old Bethany Benhower, a Camp Sherman resident, has been selected to produce the children's room mural at Sisters Library.

"The mural project relates to children," said Benhower. "It will include images of The Wizard of Oz with Dorothy and Toto, Harry Potter, a dragon, castle and knight (found in several childhood stories) and popular picture book characters. The children will enjoy the bright colors, the crisp edges flowing into one another."

She is presently working on the mural and expects to complete it within the next few weeks before going back to college.

She is a senior at Westmont College in Montecito, California (near Santa Barbara), majoring in art.

"The Sisters Library Art Committee made the selection (from seven finalists) and it was a hard decision, as all the submittals were of great quality," said Peg Bermel, Sisters Library Manager.

"What I liked about Bethany's mural was how she portrayed the children reading and envisioning their story. As you look at the mural your eye flows from one child to the next wanting to know more of the story."

Benhower attended Black Butte School in Camp Sherman where she worked with Joyce Osika in painting and watercolors.

"At Sisters High School, art teacher Mr. Baynes was very helpful in my art work and career choice," she said.

Some of her past works in the Sisters area include a Teen Center mural at SOAR, done as a joint project, a jungle room work at Sisters Community Church, a Star Wars scene done for the pastor at the church and some private commissions.

She has also donated works to the My Own Two Hands Americana Project art fund-raiser.

When not painting, Benhower enjoys volleyball and reading.

"I was so excited to receive this library commission," she said. "I love reading and the library."

Benhower hopes to obtain her credentials and become an art teacher in Oregon.

She was awarded $2,000 by the library arts committee for her project. The $2,000 was donated by local residents David and Linda Wood in memory of their son, Jonathan Emken Wood.

Commenting on her selection, Paul Bennett, Chairman of the Art Committee, said: "Bethany's mural proposal showed many strengths in its interpretation of what we were looking for and in its overall design. She also displayed a clear commitment to the project in the time she had put into her illustration for her proposal."