Local artist has long history with local projects

David Lepo - president of Lepo Works - and his brother Robert are the artists commissioned with the First on the Moon project, and if you didn't know anything about them before, don't worry. They know what they're doing.

"We do restoration work," he said.

They also work for private institutions such as churches, hospitals, casinos and libraries.

"You name a situation, we've pretty much been in them," he said.

He and Robert were exposed to art at a young age, found it to be freeing, and said that freedom was a necessity to having a creative mind and ability.

It also helped he grew-up with a strong work ethic.

"We've been doing this our entire lives," Lepo said.

They started around age 5 after being exposed to lots of different culture, and found the idea of freedom and self-expression important.

"It's something that gets into you, and then you pursue it," he said.

Lepo also saw the value in making money, so the brothers decided to turn what they loved into a business.

The brothers have been involved in a lot of

different projects, including painting for Indian Lake Playland, signage for the Pepsico company, the Roman Catholic Church, did mural work on external walls to celebrate Ohio's bicentennial, and even did backdrops for presidential campaigns dating all the way back to Ronald Reagan.

"Every four years we get these calls from the Republican Party to do backdrops and murals and signage," he said.

Locally, the brothers did work celebrating the 25th anniversary of Neil Armstrong's moon walk, worked at various churches, made art for St. Rita's hospital and even helped rebuild and refurbish the copper lady statue inside the rotunda of the Auglaize County courthouse that previously adorned the top.

"We worked with [Rachel Barber, administrator for Auglaize County Historical Society] and Greg Myers on that project," he said.

The brothers work in various mediums including wood, copper, metal and painting - and styles, and try to serve a farreaching clientele. And they aren't just Ohio artists either, as they have been commissioned to projects all over the world.