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Artists swap canvas for rain barrels to help conserve water

DNREC
Early to Rise at Sundown by Nathan Zimmerman took home the top spot in the 2016 Rain Barell Painting Contest.

Many local artists have switched from canvas and paper to paint on something a little different. The Delaware Department of Natural Resources Rain Barrel Painting Contest started out as way to get people thinking about water conservation, and has blossomed into an event that attracts artists from across the state.

The event has 20 total entrants, 10 adults and 10 children, with many on display at the Delaware Agriculture Museum in Dover.

“It’s one thing to see it in a picture, but really to get the full detail and creativity of these barrels and to see the colors and have them pop, it’s wonderful to go to the Ag Museum and see them in person," DNREC Regional Watershed Coordinator Sara Wozniak said.

The barrels feature everything from raccoon faces to pastel colored sawhorses and native Delaware flowers.

The adult contest winner by Nathan Zimmerman features a barred owl on a branch with the sun setting behind it. It will be placed at the Governor’s Mansion.

The children’s contest winner will be picked at the the Delaware State Fair.