WHAT: Skull a Day
WHEN: now through Nov. 29
WHERE: Sandusky Cultural Center, 2130 Hayes Ave., Sandusky
HOURS: 1-4 p.m. Sun.-Fri. (closed on school holidays, vacations and snow days)
COST: Free
INFO: 419-625-1188, sanduskyculturalcenter.org or skulladay.com

Have you ever seen a skull made out of an acorn? What about one made out of some old shoes? You may not think you're missing out, but they're a lot cooler — and much more impressive — than they sound. Don't believe me? See it for yourself at the Sandusky Cutural Center.

The Center's current exhibit, called the Skull a Day exhibit, features a wide variety of different skulls made out of an assortment of materials, from the aforementioned tennis shoes to bubble wrap, and everything in between. The exhibit is free to the public and runs through Nov. 29.

The Skull a Day exhibit was inspired by Noah Scalin, an artist who endeavoured to create a skull every day for a year. Scalin started the skull theme as a personal project, and it just grew exponentially.

Scalin, who is from Richmond, Va., has been looking forward to this show, though he is astounded at how well his skull ideas have been received. The Skull a Day project started as merely “a personal creative exploration and a creative outlet,” he said, but turned into more when he started posting his work on the Internet. 

“With the Internet you kind of hope it will go farther,” Scalin said, “and (the project) got even further than I could have expected, so it was in pretty short order that I was getting feedback from people all over the world.”

Scalin said that the project allowed him to not only get widespread encouragement, but it also inspired other artists to begin using skulls as a theme as well. “A lot of people were inspired by the project to do some really amazing creative work,” he said.

Charles T. Mayer, the Director of the Sandusky Cultural Center said that the idea for the show was inspired by the art and writing in Scalin's blog and his book, “Skulls.”

“He set himself a project of creating a skull a day for a year,” Mayer said of Scalin. “They could be created out of anything: found objects, art materials, photography or anything else that came to mind,” Mayer said. In addition to work by Scalin, there will also be art on display from other artists who have created their own skull-themed art. “We have 17 other artists,” Mayer explained, “mostly from the northern Ohio area, all of whom have contributed their own skull creations.”

“We're always looking for something new to present and I just happened to see Noah Scalin's book,” Mayer said. “I knew that we have had in the past a couple of shows that featured bones and other things that go along with the Day of the Dead, and those exhibits have always been very popular, so this is just a slightly different take using the Day of the Dead and Halloween as the theme.”

This impressive exhibit features more varieties of media than have ever been at the Cultural Center before, and some of it will be available to purchase for as little as $20 or as much as $6,000. “All of the money goes to the artist; we take no commission on sales.” Mayer said.

Whether you are interested in purchasing some art or just taking a look at the exhibit, the Sandusky Cultural Center is committed to bringing high quality and interesting art to the area, and this show should be no exception. “Come and enjoy an artist's take on one of everyone's favorite holidays,” Mayer said. “(The exhibit) is extremely family friendly,” he said, “and it's always free.”