EMMAUS, PA - They’re a vital connection between firefighters and the water supply. But oftentimes, they’re not very appealing. The Emmaus Arts Council is changing that...
“The fire department really needed to have the hydrants painted. They have been looking pretty worse for wear, so they actually came up with the idea of partnering with the borough and with the arts commission to turn them into public art opposed to painting them the colors that they normally are,” says Vice President of the Emmaus Arts Commission Lauren Kuhn.
In their newest public art project, the Paint-A-Hydrant program, the council has teamed up with the Borough of Emmaus and its Fire Department. Using one thousand dollars in grant money from the Lehigh County Chamber of Commerce that was matched by the Borough of Emmaus, they hired local artists to modify fire hydrants; personalizing them with bright colors, shapes and local landmarks.
“I was having a discussion with borough council about fire hydrant painting and the need to get some fire hydrants replaced, or repainted,” explains Emmaus Fire Chief John Price; “Emmaus is an old town. A lot of the hydrants here running through the center of the business district are 100 plus years old with 100 plus years layers of paint on them, so they desperately needed it. They were showing signs of rust, cracking and peeling through many layers of paint.”
With more than 500 hydrants across town, the Emmaus Arts Council has hand picked 10 to transform into works of art. All in hopes of attracting attention and beautifying the community.
“Here in Emmaus, we really need more foot traffic. It’s really beneficial to our storefronts and all of our businesses here in the three business districts that we have right here in town,” explains Kuhn, “So what we’re aiming to do is really create more people coming into town, more people staying in town and more people walking around and experiencing everything that there is to offer here in Emmaus. And the hydrants create kind of an art walk and encourages people to come on out, visit, check them out one by one and patronize some of the businesses as well. So it’s kind of a win-win.”
One of the standout pieces is this one; titled ‘Ice Cream Sundae.” Artist Christine Frobase has transformed a sidewalk staple into a show stopping masterpiece that’s appetite inducing and artistically inspiring. Frobase thought, “What are some images I could work into the shape of this and when I looked at the dome and this, I just thought of the top of an ice cream and I thought I could work a lot of colors into that. I’ve gotten to talk to more people and even online with social media like more people are talking to me and seeing more of my art so it’s a little bit different but I like it, it’s nice.”
What was initially planned to be just ten hydrants is likely to expand. The Emmaus Arts Council says the feedback they’ve received from locals and passersby has inspired them to continue the project even further throughout the borough. Kuhn says, “It’s definitely an ongoing program. This is the first ten of however many we can do here in town. We will have a grant every year and Emmaus Borough is helping to match that grant and so what we are looking to do is continue to do twenty a year. We will definitely run out of volunteers before we run out of hydrants.”
So while traditional hydrants may already be in your neighborhood, keep an eye out, you never know the potential these little waterworks have until the right eye comes along, brush and paint in hand.
Paint-a-Hydrant
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Emmaus Arts Commission’s Paint-A-Hydrant Program selects local artist
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