Correspondent photo / Maurita Hoffman
Bob and Priscilla Barko pose with Bob’s artwork depicting iconic markers of Youngstown State University. Bob graduated from the school in 1993 with an arts degree and, for the last 30 years, has painted the fire hydrants around campus to resemble Pete the Penguin, the university’s beloved mascot.

Barko, a lifelong area resident, was born in Youngstown and graduated from Boardman High School in 1987. In 1993, he graduated from Youngstown State University with a bachelor’s degree in graphic design. Last year, Barko married his wife, Priscilla, and the happy couple reside in Austintown.

To say Barko is enthusiastic about his hometown would be an understatement. He credits his parents and grandparents for his interest in Youngstown’s history. He smiled as he recalled going downtown in his younger years to “Strouss’ and McKelvey’s and the State Theater.”

As a graphic artist, much of his artwork depicts the sights and sounds of historic Youngstown. He said he looks to the skyline and admires the architecture still present, while re-creating, from old pictures or postcards, what is no longer there to immortalize the city of his memories.

Barko got his start in Youngstown art while attending classes at YSU. He said the then-chair of the graphic arts department suggested a project to the class — paint the fire hydrants around campus in Pete the Penguin motifs.

Barko laughed, saying, “I was the only one who thought it was a good idea, so I did it!”

Now his Pete the Penguin fire hydrants on and around campus greet visitors and students alike. Calling himself, “a proud Penguin, through and through,” Barko noted that he painted 40 hydrants the first year, and “now, there are more than 100 Pete the Penguin hydrants.”

“I refresh the flock about every 10 years or as needed or when hydrants are replaced due to construction,” he said. The flock received a fresh coat this year.

Barko can be found serving his community in other ways as well.

Those military aircraft with his mark? Barko is intimately familiar with them as well. Currently, he serves as a senior master sergeant in the 910th Airlift Wing’s public affairs office. Mentioning the air base to any semi-influential figure in the Mahoning Valley will be met with the question, “Do you know Bob Barko?”

Barko, who has had an almost 30-year service career, initially enlisted in the Ohio National Guard in 1986. In 1992, he mentioned his interest in art to his leadership and was told at that time, “There is no job in art,” so he did not reenlist. In 2000, his former commander, Brig. Gen. Ronald Young, suggested Barko work for him “in Columbus in public affairs.” Barko waited until 2001 to reenlist — “this time as a photojournalist.”

Eventually, Barko was able to transfer to the Air Force Reserve and be “a lot closer to home.”

Barko noted that, “back in the day, fine arts were one thing, and graphic arts — a totally different field.” He has combined the two arts into beautiful collages and paintings. In 1993, Barko opened his Steel Town Studios in downtown Youngstown. He closed the physical store in January 2012 ahead of a six-month deployment to Afghanistan. Now he sells his artwork at various venues and shows and through his catalog.

Barko designed the “YO” decal in 2006. He said he had a “VB” decal on his van for Virginia Beach, Virginia, and a “SK” for Siesta Key, Florida.

“I thought ‘I should do one of these for Youngstown, but what?'” he recalled. It was when he saw the abbreviation “YO” used at the post office that he decided, “This was it.” He said his first batch “went like gangbusters.” The decals, as well as “20 different decal and magnet products” are available at www.steeltownstudios.com.

Barko created the “Here in Youngstown” mural in 2007, in cooperation with the Junior League of Youngstown. Initially, the mural was 24 feet long and 6 feet high.

“In 2019, I added two panels, increasing the length of it to 32 feet,” he said.

Today a reproduction of that mural is displayed as part of the State Theater Block Project on West Federal Street. He created his first illustration of the skyline of Youngstown in 1996.

Youngstown is not the only city that has benefited from Barko’s talents.

He said an art layout of Pittsburgh “took me longer to finish than I expected,” and the shop owner no longer wanted it because “Christmas was over, and no one would buy it.”

Undeterred by the setback, Barko took his work to the Station Square Gallery in Pittsburgh to see if he could sell it there.

“I was hoping to sell the one, but immediately, they placed an order for 30 of them,” he said.

In 2021, he participated in a contest to paint the Canfield Fair Rooster. His entry, “The Big Rooster and a Very Fair Coat” is still in use at the fair and is displayed at the Michael Kusalaba Event Center on the Canfield Fairgrounds.

“I enjoy talking to young people who approach me at the shows and ask about my drawings,” Barko said.

He asks the kids if they color. If they say yes, he asks them if they use colored pencils. Going along, he said he tells them, “So do I.” Then he asks what kind, and they all say, “Crayola.” He laughed as he said, “So do I!” Barko noted it is a fun way to make children realize that what they do is a kind of art and that is a good thing.

Barko is adamant about promoting the good aspects of the Valley. He said he finds it offensive when people talk negatively about Youngstown.

“I was at the fair one year and somebody walked by wearing a T-shirt with the words ‘Murder Capital’ on it,” he said. “Every city has good histories and bad histories, but there is plenty to celebrate (about Youngstown).”