(La Porte, IN) - An artist from Chicago painted the latest in a growing number of murals in downtown La Porte.

 

Cheri Lee Charlton is a muralist whose clients include The Girl Scouts of America, Gino’s Pizza and the Chicago Fire professional soccer team.

 

In 2021, Charlton was selected to design and paint a large-scale mural in Morocco to celebrate the 200 year anniversary of relations between that country and the United States.

 

The new mural depicting the ecosystem of an inland lake with images such as a large frog, turtle, lily pads and dragon flies is on the outside wall at Hotspot Café at 602 Lincolnway.

Owner Charity Hlavsa said she couldn’t be happier about how the mural turned out.

 

“The public response has been amazing.   Everybody loves it,” she said.

 

It’s the fourth mural to go up in downtown La Porte in recent years from a partnership between the city and Lubeznik Center for the Arts in Michigan City to promote culture and quality of life in the area.

 

“I’m grateful for the LaPorte community.  They really come together to embrace the arts,” said Janet Bloch, Executive Director of the LCA.

 

The Health Foundation of LaPorte and the city’s Urban Enterprise Association awarded grants to pay for the mural.

 

Hlavsa said her building was chosen for the mural after she expressed an interest in having one at a time locations were being sought for them.

 

After ideas were exchanged on what the huge painting should look like, Charlton came back with conceptual drawings of three murals.  The drawing of the mural that just went up was overwhelmingly chosen as a symbol of the city’s inland lakes.

 

“It was a good fit,” she said.

 

Mayor Tom Dermody described the mural as “a perfect example of what can happen when the community embraces such efforts.”

 

A ribbon cutting for the new mural is scheduled Friday at 12 p.m.  Another mural is planned in the downtown sometime this summer or fall.