The Chippewa River is about to get a bit more arty. UWEC seniors Megan Byron and Catelyn Mailloux were approved by city council Tuesday to go ahead with a riverside piece called the River Bend Art Project. The project – which would stretch from roughly Third Avenue to the Water Street Bridge on the northern bank of the Chippewa – consists of large plexiglass panels and hundreds of smaller elements to mimic how the riverbank might look after a flood. The project won’t be completely the work of Byron and Mailloux though: The smaller elements include drawings done by Eau Claire children. The various pieces of art along the river should last through September and were installed by volunteers on Sept. 8.