Onancock Main Street will soon unveil new mural

Onancock Main Street (OMS) soon will unveil the first of several murals the organization has commissioned to enhance the town’s downtown district. The mural, by Virginia Beach artist Seth Lubaton, will adorn the rear wall of 9 North Street and be visible to everyone using the town parking lot on King Street.

Lubaton, an experienced muralist, has designed and completed more than 40 murals. He was selected from 14 applicants for this project because his design’s colorful, graphic images evoke the town’s flower boxes, planters and gardens, and honor the native pollinators that are essential to the natural environment.

The mural – one of three that will be executed in the downtown district this spring and summer – is a project of OMS and was funded by grants from Virginia Main Street, a program of the Virginia Department of Housing and Community Development.

“OMS is committed to bringing public art to the downtown with murals that reflect the unique character of our community,” said Cindy Holdren, chairperson of the OMS Mural Committee. “The project is intended to engage residents and visitors, hopefully increasing foot traffic to our businesses.”

OMS is grateful to business owners, Mary and Elon Benaknin, for embracing the concept of a mural and offering their building for this project.

Stop by to see Lubaton at work. He plans to begin April 11, weather permitting, and the project is expected to take up to three weeks.

While here, Lubaton also will replicate a Willie Crockett watercolor painting on the upper story east side of the Crockett building at 39 Market Street.

An open-house reception for people interested in meeting and chatting with Lubaton is scheduled for April 19, at 1 p.m. at 20 Market Street, Onancock.