Gibson County is getting a homemade touch. The Gibson County Visitors and Tourism Bureau says it's bringing art work to the community to celebrate the county's bicentennial. They hope a barn quilt tour will bring more people to the area.
Things are on the move in Gibson County as plans are in the works to celebrate the past 200 years.
"It's really gratifying and exciting for us to have a project that the local residents are really buying into and really excited about participating in. Those projects are hard to come by sometimes," Eric Heidenreich said.
The project is called the Bicentennial Barn Quilt Tour. Some people are painting directly on a building, while others are painting on square blocks of wood. The Visitors & Tourism Bureau says it's creating the tour to explore the county and view the quilt blocks. These bright creations are popping up across town, from the courthouse to the fairgrounds.
"Maybe its a pattern from a quilt that their grandmother made or they have a particular business and their quilt block represents the business that they're in, or some kind of family tradition so that's been really interesting. That brings a real human interest to the project as well," Heidenreich said.
And the community is jumping on board. So far, 65 residents and businesses are creating their artwork. Donna Anslinger is already done with hers. She says it took her husband a week to paint. Now, they're getting ready to mount it on their barn and share it with others.
"I have seen them around town and it is exciting. I think it's going to be interesting to hear some of the stories behind them because obviously you don't know what inspired them to do that," Donna Anslinger said.
Anslinger has been quilting for more than 20 years and she's excited to be part of the driving tour that's bringing history back to life.
"I think it's part of our heritage. We're such a German community and if you talk to most of us, we've either had parents, grandparents, somebody who quilted, and which is why I got into it because I thought it was a dying art and I didn't want it to die, I thought it was that cool," Anslinger said.
As more quilt blocks appear, it brings pride to a place that is celebrating where it came from.
If you want to participate, the application deadline is at the end of February. A ceremony on April 1st will kick off the tour.
Things are on the move in Gibson County as plans are in the works to celebrate the past 200 years.
"It's really gratifying and exciting for us to have a project that the local residents are really buying into and really excited about participating in. Those projects are hard to come by sometimes," Eric Heidenreich said.
The project is called the Bicentennial Barn Quilt Tour. Some people are painting directly on a building, while others are painting on square blocks of wood. The Visitors & Tourism Bureau says it's creating the tour to explore the county and view the quilt blocks. These bright creations are popping up across town, from the courthouse to the fairgrounds.
"Maybe its a pattern from a quilt that their grandmother made or they have a particular business and their quilt block represents the business that they're in, or some kind of family tradition so that's been really interesting. That brings a real human interest to the project as well," Heidenreich said.
And the community is jumping on board. So far, 65 residents and businesses are creating their artwork. Donna Anslinger is already done with hers. She says it took her husband a week to paint. Now, they're getting ready to mount it on their barn and share it with others.
"I have seen them around town and it is exciting. I think it's going to be interesting to hear some of the stories behind them because obviously you don't know what inspired them to do that," Donna Anslinger said.
Anslinger has been quilting for more than 20 years and she's excited to be part of the driving tour that's bringing history back to life.
"I think it's part of our heritage. We're such a German community and if you talk to most of us, we've either had parents, grandparents, somebody who quilted, and which is why I got into it because I thought it was a dying art and I didn't want it to die, I thought it was that cool," Anslinger said.
As more quilt blocks appear, it brings pride to a place that is celebrating where it came from.
If you want to participate, the application deadline is at the end of February. A ceremony on April 1st will kick off the tour.
