Neighbors in Northern California created their own art museum, using driveways and sidewalks

Vincent Van Gogh&#039;s &quot;Starry Night.&quot;

(Image credit: Cristina Quicler/AFP via Getty Images)

published 25 March 2020

If you can't go to an art museum, bring the art museum to you.

Because of the coronavirus pandemic, Daphne Sashin and her family have been staying inside their Mountain View, California, home, only going outside for walks and bike riding. Last week, she thought of a way to beautify the neighborhood: have interested families use chalk to create works of art on their driveways and sidewalks. She sent an email out to neighbors, and gave interested parties a deadline of Friday at noon to finish their drawings.

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She got to drawing with her kids Jack, 8, and Lucy, 5, and the Sashins weren't alone — more than 50 homes in the neighborhood participated. Some recreated famous works by the likes of Vincent Van Gogh, while others drew their own original pieces. The art has made a difference, and could be a new neighborhood tradition, Sashin told CNN. "This was an extra motivation to walk around the neighborhood," she said. "It brought people together in a safe way."

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Catherine Garcia has worked as a senior writer at The Week since 2014. Her writing and reporting have appeared in Entertainment Weekly, The New York Times, Wirecutter, NBC News and "The Book of Jezebel," among others. She's a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.

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