Random Acts of Mind-Bliss

SECCA and Winston-Salem welcome German artist Anna von Gwinner to town this week as she opens the first of a two-part exhibition of her work in SECCA's "Inside Out: Artists in the Community II" series of public art. Her first work, "in flight," is on display this weekend only, April 3-5, from 7-10pm nightly at a most unusual location: an RV storage container at the Moore Self-Storage facility in an industrial park off Stratford Road, 3935 Westpoint Boulevard (see directions here).

Von Gwinner is known for her use of video projections, taking short video loops of everyday objects and silhouettes and placing them in surprising encounters of scale and place that get viewers to re-imagine their experience of the urban landscape. In this new work the dislocation of placement space mirrors the dislocation of our economic environment these days. And her imagery, balls of all shapes, sizes and colors speeding through the frame without ever fully revealing their path -- well, the feeling of disconnect from cause and effect should be familiar to anyone watching the fall of their blue-chip 401k portfolios this last year....

The folks at SECCA invite all to come take a view of this playful yet thought-provoking complement to our built environment. And if you come early there is an additional enticement: the first 300 visitors to the projection will be eligible to win an Apple iPhone 3G (no usage contract, just the phone). Drawing registration will take place April 3, 4 and 5 during show times. Images courtesy of the SECCA website.

Public Art Party-Planning

The United Kingdom is using public art to celebrate an important event in the life of the nation: the upcoming London 2012 Olympic Games. As part of a Cultural Olympiad which celebrates the other unique attributes of the sporting event's host country, UK Arts Councils and partners are sponsoring the "Artists Taking the Lead" project, bringing artists together with local communities to create twelve major pieces of artwork for the nine regions of England and one each in Wales, Scotland, and Northern Ireland. With a budget of $7.9 million - up to $731,000 per commission - they are "encouraging artists to use the nation as a blank canvas and showcase the UK's creativity to the world."

Even if we lack their budget, the process and goals of the UK plan are instructive to how Winston-Salem might use public art in its centennial party-planning for 2013. In the spring of 2009, UK artists are being solicited to submit 400-word proposals for ideas for an artwork. To be considered, the works must 1) be original; 2) reflect, and be inspired by, the location in which they will take shape; 3) leave a legacy for artists and communities beyond 2012; and 4) celebrate London 2012 and reflect the values and vision of the London 2012 Cultural Olympiad. One could imagine similar criteria for art here. It should reflect the neighborhood or cultural community in which it's sited - Buena Vista, Waughtown, Reynoldstown, Southside, and Mineral Springs all have a different feel than the Central Business District. The artwork should be of long-term value to the city by showcasing its appreciation for, and attracting further, quality art. And each piece of art could celebrate an aspect of Winston-Salem's story, qualities, or aspirations.

By this summer, four finalists for each of the twelve projects will be chosen in the UK and awarded $7300 to flesh out their ideas into formal proposals. Proposals will be chosen this fall for work to be finished by 2012. That's a four-year lead time from idea, to formal proposal, to selection, to installation. And the money for their work has already been pledged and is in place. In Winston-Salem we have four years until 2013. We have no monies assigned - yet. We have no public or private organization able to sponsor, or gather artist ideas and community feedback, or help with siting and red tape - yet. But if we could get just one new transcendent symbol for our city out of a process that asks artists to envision with us, we might indeed become not just a place best known for its quality product vices - both glazed and filtered - but also, without hesitation, "that City of the Arts."

Photo from London 2012 website. Thanks to SECCA's Mark Leach for the tip on public art work for London 2012.

Rise Up Winston-Salem

Congrats to artist Charlie Brouwer, SECCA, Old Salem, and our community for contributing to the successful creation of Winston-Salem's newest work of public art, "Rise Up Winston-Salem," on display now through April 12 at Tavern Meadow on Main Street in Old Salem.

Building off a recurring theme in many of his own early sculptural works, Brouwer began creating his "Rise Up" series in 2002, using ladders as a representation of the notion of "rising up:" in the words of the SECCA description of his work, "translating the human impulse to strive for something higher into a form of community building." The SECCA website features podcasts of interviews with the artist and a fascinating time-lapse film of the creation of this work. (Acknowledgment should be given, too, to the Moravian blessing upon the weather for this installation - it was a gorgeous early spring day.) In a further nod to community building, the artist and SECCA have recorded stories behind a number of the ladders lent for the creation of this project - including one accidental memory attached to Mayor Joines' ladder - and those are accessible on site and remotely by calling 336-201-0681. The picture above and other photos of this installation can be found at SECCA's MySpace photo site.