Jan Brown Checco, lead artist of the paint out program, said it was the first of its kind ever to be done between Cincinnati and Liuzhou in Guangxi. The two cities celebrated their 30th anniversary of the establishment of sister city relations last year.

Having volunteered to work with Cincinnati's network of 10 sister cities for 20 years, she said such partnerships among cities far apart made people feel much connected.

One of the places that the artists went sketching was the Smale Riverfront Park. Built only eight years ago, the park has become the front yard of the entire city. Checco, who took part in designing the park, said some of the features were inspired by designers' trip to Liuzhou.