» Champayne left mark on Bandon

Friday, October 03, 2008 | 1 comment(s) Jack Richard Champayne was born in Michigan on Nov. 2, 1933. In 1990, he met and shortly later married his wife, Ruthie, who now lives in Coos Bay. In 1997, Champayne was honored by the Bandon Centennial Committee for his mural on the side of what is now the McNair Building. At the time, the mural dramatized the history of Bandon, from its Native American roots to the harvest of cranberries. Years later, he repainted the wall with a new mural of swimming orcas. Champayne died of cancer on Nov. 3, 2003.

Among its collection of local artwork, the Bandon Public Library features Champayne’s painting of Face Rock, donated by Gregg and Norma James. Nearby, a special plaque illustrated with a series of photos from boyhood to mural painting discusses Champayne’s life.

Champayne’s murals can be viewed around Bandon, on the west side of Brewed Awakenings; the east side of the McNair Building; the southern side of Bandon Fisheries; the east side of the now empty building at the western end of First Street; the east side of Bandon Video; and at the city’s sewage and wastewater treatment facility on Riverside Drive.

In all, Champayne painted 68 murals in Coos, Curry and Douglas counties. They could be seen from as far north as Elkton to as far south as Gold Beach, his widow said.