The sculptures and billboards for the Wake Forest Outdoor Sculpture Exhibit and Spotlight on Wake Forest Artists Exhibit have been installed, and the town’s public art commission will host a special reception for area residents Saturday, July 29, from 2 to 4 p.m. at the Wake Forest Renaissance Centre for the Arts Annex at 407 Brooks Street. Light refreshments will be provided.
Commission chairman John Pelosi, who watched as the sculptures were placed on their concrete pads, said, “Five of the sculptures arrived on a truck or trailer and were set up on the designated site either with the help of town staff or without it. Once the sculpture was installed the artist took off for home or parts unknown.
“One sculptor did it differently. Mathias Neumann arrived from New York City by plane, rented an SUV and headed for Home Depot. He then purchased a large number of 2 X 4s and built his sculpture on site over a three-day period. He changed the design as he developed it and created something that is very different from whatever he had done before using the park location and the constraints of the concrete pad as his stimulus. I think that is true creativity.”
Free, illustrated maps highlighting the locations of the works on view for each exhibit will be available during the reception. Area residents who are unable to attend the reception but wish to take the self-guided tour may also pick up a brochure at the Renaissance Centre and at Wake Forest Town Hall, 301 Brooks Street.
Wake Forest Guild Artists and artists residing in Wake Forest were invited to submit one piece of original art to the Spotlight on Wake Forest Artists Contest. An artist selection committee comprised of arts professionals and representatives of the Town of Wake Forest, the commission and Wake Forest Downtown, along with professional artists who do not reside within Wake Forest selected the following four works:
- Three is Company by Linda Burrell is at the Flaherty Park Community Center
- Creation by Beth Massey is at the [unfinished] Taylor Street Playground
- Neuse River Crossings by Anne Howard is on the town Facilities Building
- Rainforest by Gayle Blackerby is on the Wake Forest Police Department
To view the works of art in the Spotlight on Wake Forest Artists Exhibit, visit www.wakeforestnc.gov/spotlight-on-wake-forest-artists.aspx.
Each of the four selected art works will be scanned into an electronic image and reproduced in brick vinyl. The vinyl will then be applied to the facade of select buildings in downtown Wake Forest. A plaque with information about the artist will be located near the art panel. Each of the four artists will receive a $100 stipend and their artwork will remain on display for one year.
The Wake Forest Outdoor Sculpture Exhibit will feature six three-dimensional sculptural works of art by a variety of artists in publicly-accessible outdoor spaces throughout Wake Forest, including the Wake Forest Town Hall campus, the Wake Forest Renaissance Centre, Miller Park, Holding Park, and the Depot Parking Lot.
Experienced artists and artist teams across North Carolina and beyond were invited to apply. An Artist Selection Committee made up of arts professionals and representatives of the Town of Wake Forest, the public art commission and Wake Forest Downtown selected the following six works for the show (the display location for each sculpture is shown in parenthesis):
- Oak Leaf Horizon by Jim Gallucci (Town Hall campus, 301 Brooks Street)
- Popsicle, by CR Gray (Depot Parking Lot, 110 South White Street) to be installed Aug. 3 and 4
- Mountain Landscape by Hanna Jubran (Town Hall campus, east side of Taylor Street and Elm Avenue)
- Transformation 2 by Ray Katz (Town Hall campus, vicinity of Owen Avenue and Taylor Street)
- Turning Point by Wayne Vaughn (Miller Park, 401 Elm Avenue)
- Bench V by Matthias Neumann (Holding Park, 133 West Owen Ave.)
To view the sculptures in the outdoor sculpture exhibition, visit www.wakeforestnc.gov/sculpture-wake-forest.aspx. They will remain in place for a year and will be replaced with six new works after that. The goal is to have a continuing exhibit.
Selections were based on artistic excellence and the goal of exhibiting a variety of styles and media in appropriate sites. Each of the seven artists will receive a $1,500 stipend.
