Mansfield’s Luke Beekman, the director of the nonprofit organization Mankind Murals Inc., has been selected as the state winner of the Ohio Art Education Association’s Distinguished Citizen for Arts Education.
Beekman has been director since Oct. 25, 2015 at Mankind Murals, which creates opportunities for public art to thrive. He is a painter by trade, including business and residential.
His murals are everywhere in Mansfield, from Johns Park to downtown.
He was among six finalists nominated by OAEA members because of their tremendous impact on arts education, according to a news release.
Mankind Murals Inc. is celebrating a decade of creativity in November. The nonprofit has spent the past 10 years bringing color, life and community pride to Mansfield through public art. A ribbon-cutting ceremony will be celebrated Nov. 13 at 4 p.m. at Mankind Murals, 88 N. Diamond St., with members of the Richland Area Chamber & Economic Development.
The OAEA will celebrate him and other award winners at its annual awards banquet on Nov. 14 in Columbus.
The Ohio Art Education Association is the leading professional membership organization exclusively for educators in Ohio. Members include elementary, middle and high school arts educators; college and university professors; researchers and scholars; teaching artists; administrators and supervisors; and art museum educators. OAEA’s mission is to build a community for visual arts educators by promoting professional growth and leadership, according to a news release.
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This article originally appeared on Mansfield News Journal: Mansfield’s own Luke Beekman named state winner of arts education award
Reporting by Lou Whitmire, Mansfield News Journal / Mansfield News Journal
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