“Nature’s Gallery” is in bloom in downtown Sharon, Pa.

The public art project, one of the first completed by Random Acts of Artists after it became a nonprofit organization, debuted along West Connelly Boulevard across from the Sharon City Building in 2017.

RAA President Terry Polonsky said some of the original art panels were weathered, so it put out a call to members to replace them.

“We came up with the theme of ‘Nature’s Gallery,’ and the artists were instructed to do butterflies, flowers and birds,” Polonsky said. “It’s quite a lot of work because the panels are 3 foot by 4 foot, and they were instructed to do both sides, so it’s 24 square feet of surface area they had to paint.”

The panels are mounted on posts and can rotate 360 degrees, adding an element of motion depending upon the wind.

RAA supplied the medium density overlay panels used as canvases and provided instructions on how to prime the surface, but the artists donated their time and talent to create the 20 works.

Artists who contributed to the project are Hazel Bobosky, Cynthia Buell, Paulette Catchpole, Linda Clark, Debra Derrenbacher, Eileen Drolsbaugh, Suzanne Bort Gray, Sue Griffin, Marlene LaCamera, Leanne Lee, Brooke Mergl, Harper and Harmony Mergl, Pat Miller, Sara Ostheimer, Terry Polonsky, Sara Lee Rose, Heather Smith, Jeff Vargo, Ashley Vaughan and Alyssa Vaughn.

“It cost about $3,000 to accomplish it, the revamping,” Polonsky said.

“For the original, we had help from the Sharon Beautification Commission, which I’m a part of as well. They were very instrumental in constructing the apparatus that allows them to turn. When you drive by one time when the wind’s blowing from the north, it’s one way, and next time with the winds blowing the other way, you see the different panels.”

A recognition ceremony for the artists is planned at 3 p.m. Saturday in conjunction with WaterFire Sharon festivities.

RAA’s membership includes artists in western Pennsylvania and the Mahoning Valley. It works with Trumbull Art Gallery in Warren for its annual juried exhibition, and its members currently have an exhibition at Studio South Art Exchange in Boardman.

“Nature’s Gallery’ is one of several public art projects RAA and its members have completed in the city.

“The name Random Acts of Artists transpired because we just started doing things in downtown Sharon, putting artwork up where we were,” Polonsky said.

“We got permission to, but we just decided to do some random acts of art in downtown Sharon, and then we formally got together and became a nonprofit in 2016. One of the things that we hope to accomplish is the tourism aspect of bringing artwork to a community. It’s been proven over and over again in many, many communities, if there’s a source of art, whatever it might be, it attracts people.”