(Photo courtesy of Visit Bend)
Cedar Zagurski,16, is the youngest featured artist in program history
Visit Bend’s Pillars of Art program has been paying artists to draw on the walls since 2011, but the newest featured artist was just nine years old when the program got its start.
Now a 16-year-old high school junior, Cedar Zagurski of Bend is the youngest artist ever selected for the program, which features one artist each year tasked with creating unique chalk art on the cement pillars in the lobby of the Bend Visitor Center.
Zagurski brought his portfolio to the Visitor Center last spring and showed it to Vice President of Operations Valerie Warren, who oversees the program. She was impressed by Zagurski’s skillset and his vision for the pillars. “He has a unique style and a lot of talent for someone so young,” she said. “I liked his concept for incorporating human hands into scenes that are recognizable Bend landmarks and activities.”
In addition to receiving a small stipend, selected artists have their framed work displayed and sold in the Bend Visitor Center for one year. The program has been hailed for promoting local artists and exposing their work to thousands of guests who pass through the Bend Visitor Center each year.
Zagurski spent the last half of August up on a ladder covering the pillars with bright chalk drawings. His artwork on the pillars depicts scenes like hiking through the woods and floating the Deschutes River through Bend’s Old Mill District, and incorporates a human element into most of the scenes. “I enjoy drawing hands and including them in my art, so I thought, what better way to show someone’s hands than to show what that person is seeing?” Zagurski explained.
The relationship between humans and nature is something of a passion for Zagurski, who enjoys hiking and running when he’s not drawing or painting. “The beautiful colors and scenes around Bend help inspire my art,” he said.
With two years left of high school, Zagurski isn’t certain what he wants to do after he graduates, but he knows one thing for sure. “I plan to take lots of art classes through high school and into college,” he said. “Even if my main career isn’t art, I want it to always be part of my life in some way.”
For more information about the Pillars of Art program, go here:
https://www.visitbend.com/things-to-do/art-museums-history/arts/pillars-of-art/
About Visit Bend
Visit Bend is a non-membership, non-profit economic development organization dedicated to promoting tourism on behalf of the City of Bend. We’re a leading provider of information on Bend, Oregon hotels, restaurants, activities, and Oregon vacation planning. To learn more or to order a complimentary Official Visitor Guide to Bend, contact Visit Bend at 1-800-949-6086 or visitwww.visitbend.com.