Local media covers UC's Hero Bearcats public art exhibit
Local media coverage of UC’s new art exhibit, which supports student scholarships and services and celebrates Cincinnati’s everyday heroes
They’re life-sized, they celebrate everyday heroes and they’re popping up this week at prominent locations across Greater Cincinnati. The University of Cincinnati’s new Hero Bearcats public art campaign, which launched April 5, is generating both buzz online (#HeroBearcats) and local media coverage.
The exhibit, which features 30 life-sized, distinctively decorated statues of the university’s iconic Bearcat mascot, celebrates everyday heroes like astronauts, nurses, firefighters, police officers, farmers and others in colorful, whimsical ways.
The statues, decorated by local artists, including students from area high schools, will blanket the region for six months. You can find them at prominent locations across Greater Cincinnati from Florence to Downtown to Butler County’s Liberty Center.
Proceeds from statue sponsorships benefit student scholarships, the Bearcats Food Pantry and healthcare services for underserved members of the community. Kroger and UC Health are presenting sponsors of the campaign.
Hero Bearcats in the news
Cincinnati Business Courier: http://bit.ly/2Kh1VRa
Local 12: http://bit.ly/2uRWMV8
The River City News: http://bit.ly/2UlPLLz
Engineering Bearcat. Andrew Higley/UC Creative Services
Featured image at top: Hero Bearcats on display. Photo/Andrew Higley/UC Creative Services
Related Stories
Hoxworth Blood Center, Music Hall invite blood donors to a Symphony of Saving Lives on March 31
March 19, 2026
Hoxworth Blood Center, University of Cincinnati, is calling on the music community to roll up their sleeves this March at an unforgettable specialty blood drive at Music Hall, where the power of music meets the power of saving lives.
CCM alumna advances Metropolitan Opera Laffont Competition Grand Finals
March 16, 2026
Three UC College-Conservatory of Music alumni and one current student are semifinalists in the 2026 Metropolitan Opera Eric and Dominique Laffont Competition. One of the most prestigious singing competitions in the world, the Laffont Competition's national semifinals take place on Sunday, March 15, 2026.
Cincinnati’s top-ranking murals impact more than city aesthetics
March 11, 2026
Cincinnati recently ranked as the nation’s runner-up for best street art. Spectrum News turned to Hyesun Jeong, assistant professor of urban design in the University of Cincinnati’s School of Art at the College of Design, Architecture, Art, and Planning (DAAP), for insights on the tangible impact of these murals.