The 2026 Festival T-shirt!
The moment you've all been waiting for - the winner of the OWE Festival t-shirt design contest! There were 12 amazing designs, all beautiful. Thanks to all the entrants for their hard work and creativity. T-shirts are $25, or get a 3/4 sleeve baseball shirt for $32.
How can you get one of these fantastic t-shirts? Two ways!
1) Purchase a shirt through this pop-up store:
2) Sign up to volunteer and get one for free! More info here.
About the Artist
Daria Sysoeva is an artist based in Toledo, Ohio’s Historic Old West End neighborhood. Born in Russia and now rooted in the Midwest, she focuses her artistic interests on cultural and family history, symbolism, and storytelling. Her work is interdisciplinary and includes illustration, traditional drawing and painting, and writing. She holds a degree from the University of Toledo, where she studied creative writing and visual arts, specifically poetry, studio art, digital art, and graphic design. Daria is currently expanding her practice through jewelry and metalsmithing, working from a home studio and taking courses at the Toledo Museum of Art. Her jewelry work, created under the name 12 Raccoons Jewelry, explores historical craft techniques and the relationship between material, form, and meaning. Daria’s work has appeared in several local exhibitions, including the Faux Space Exhibition at the UT Planetarium, the UT Digital Billboard Art Exhibition, the Imagination Station Showcase, and the University of Toledo Juried Student Exhibition. She has also published several books of poetry in both Russian and English, including her chapbook, "Dust and Terebinth." Living in the Old West End with her cat Lapka, Daria draws inspiration from the neighborhood’s welcoming community, its architectural history, and its long tradition as a creative hub. Her design for the 2026 Historic Old West End Festival is a celebration of that history - and of the people who keep it alive.
