When Kara Hoblin, a local chalkboard artist, created her latest piece thanking the medical workers on the front lines of COVID-19, she didn’t think the response would go beyond the local community.
But since posting to her Facebook page on April 14, photos of the mural, which depicts health care workers dressed in scrubs and masks surrounded by flowers with the words ‘thank you’ at the bottom, the post has been shared over 200,000 times.
“I figured I would get the same response from the people who already follow me and like my work — that they would appreciate it,” she said. “I guess I didn’t really realize it right away, but then a couple days after, it was being posted a lot by people that I didn’t know. And then slowly, every day people were messaging me from different countries.”
In creating the chalk art at her Cutchogue home, Hoblin just wanted to show her appreciation for those putting their lives on the line everyday.
“Seeing the news is very difficult,” she said. “I think this whole situation is difficult and stressful for a lot of people, especially for the nurses and doctors. I just wanted to do a thank you.”
The mural resonated with people far beyond the North Fork, with many commenting on the photo thanking Hoblin for her work.
“I think a common factor between a lot of my work is connection. It’s bringing people together and using art as a way of healing and moving through things,” she said. “Unintentionally, it did it again in a new way though — in a way I didn’t predict. It brought all these people from all over the world together through positivity.”
Hoblin hopes that the positivity continues and inspires others to do their own kind works as well. And she has plans to make more chalk artwork, thanking countless others for their contributions during this time.
“I’m really happy that it’s making other people happy when there aren’t that many things to hold on to right now,” she said. “I’m going to do more. There are so many other people to thank. I’m trying to think of ways to keep the positivity growing, and I hope it inspires people to do good deeds.”
