One aspiring artist studying at Slippery Rock University has used her skills to shine a light on “Faces of Courage.”

Kaci Flora, a senior, molded the faces of 50 officers from the region and used them to create plaster masks, which she arranged and bathed in blue light to represent the “Thin Blue Line,” a symbol used to identify law enforcement.

“I'm tired of seeing all the negativity,” Flora said of why she started the project. “I thought it would be impactful to see these people not from behind a gun and a badge.”

“Faces of Courage,” which will be displayed from Monday through Thursday at SRU's Martha Gault Art Gallery, also served as Flora's capstone project on her way to earning a bachelor of fine arts degree.

But she said the project was more important to her than simply class credit.

Flora said she started with the officers in her family and used their connections to recruit others to take part in her artwork.

Trooper James Long of the Pennsylvania State Police Troop D barracks in Butler said he and 10 other troopers accepted Flora's proposal.

Long said the process started with petroleum jelly.

“You actually put Vaseline all over your face to keep the material from adhering to your skin,” Long said. “I mean absolutely everywhere.”

Next, Flora would place straws in the officer's nose, so they could breath while she slowly poured alginate onto their faces.

“When it goes on, it's cold,” Long said. “It has a thick batter consistency similar to pancakes.”

Long said he handled the 35-minute process well, but he can see how some may be squeamish about the idea, even police officers.

“People that have issues with tight spaces or claustrophobic wouldn't like it,” he said. “You have to have patience and a little bit of nerve to finish it.”

Flora then took all 50 molds and filled them with plaster, painted them blue and then arranged them for showing. She said using the mold can be more nerve-racking for the artist than making the molds.

“I usually only get one really good mold out of it,” Flora said.

She painted the molds white to bring out the officers' facial features and used a blue light to unite them in their service to the community.

The officers came from Butler, Pittsburgh and even Slippery Rock University's own campus police department.

“The amount of involvement from so many jurisdictions has been amazing,” Flora said.

Long said Flora also interviewed some of the officers for a video that plays into the theme.

“She asked some pretty introspective questions,” Long said. “They can see that we're real people with real families.”

Long said being a part of the exhibit has not only given him the opportunity to promote his profession, but also be a part of something unique.

“That's kind of why I jumped at the chance,” he said. “A lot of the other officers said the same: that this is a once-in-a-lifetime chance.”

Long said he looks forward to seeing the exhibit and showing his children and others a glimpse into the spirit of being a police officer.

“These days it's pretty hard to promote our profession,” Long said. “I plan on taking my family up there. It'd be something for my kids to not only see an art exhibition and see their dad in it for no other reason than the profession I chose.”