LAKEWOOD, Ohio — When it comes to her artwork, Ann-Marie Crawmer goes by the name, “Many Tiny Lines.”
“I like doing my really small little lines,” she said.
Crawmer, an upcoming senior at The Ohio State University, is using her passion for architectural illustrations to help her hometown bounce back from the pandemic.
“I feel like it was a no brainer. There’s a lot of businesses that I already wanted to draw and it just kind of clicked,” Crawmer said. “I have all of these different pages of sketches but they all will come together on this one 12 x 18 print.”
Three months ago, Crawmer set out to start a project called “Lakewood Small.” It’s an art print up for sale on Etsy for $23. It features 48 of Lakewood’s oldest and most cherished small businesses, which are trying to survive a new normal during the pandemic.
“It took a lot of research. I went and took photos of the buildings on my own. I did a lot of Google Maps searching,” Crawmer explained. “I’ve been tired at points but at the end of the day it’s not about me, it’s about these people and their businesses and the heart and soul of Lakewood that they provide.”
Steven Sink’s barbershop is one of the businesses featured in Crawmer’s project.
“I feel blessed that she chose us to be a part of that and it’s just a beautiful piece of artwork,” he said.
His shop, Belle Barbershop, opened in 1917, but the pandemic has made it hard to stay open.
“These are really hard times a lot of people still unemployed and economy is not great right now so every little bit helps and for someone to pitch in and just give up her own time and talent is awesome,” Sink said.
Crawmer hopes her art helps fuel more appreciation for the gems throughout Lakewood and 100% of the proceeds will go toward keeping them around.
“The community is hurting,” she said. “I just felt stir crazy and want to do something and being a college student this was really the only outlet I had for that.”
