Public Art

Public art will be a significant feature along the Greenway, including functional pieces such as benches, bike racks, trash cans, and signage, as well as pieces for historical and inspirational purposes.

Cornerstones
In celebration of the unique qualities of The Gate City, Greensboro, N.C., and its citizens, the Greenway will include four major pieces of public art that recognize the four pillars that make Greensboro's character unique. These four pieces of art will recognize Greensboro's heritage and also look ahead to its future.

• Motion - education (southwest corner)
• Tradition - history (northwest corner)
• Innovation - industry/textiles (northeast corner)
• Freedom - civil rights (southeast corner)

Four artists will be selected from a national pool to design and build the pieces. The first to be constructed will be installed on the southwest corner near the intersection of West Lee Street and the Freeman Mill Road ramp. Brower Hatcher has been selected as the artist to design and construct the Southwestern Cornerstone of the Downtown Greenway, to be located on the corner of West Lee Street and the Freeman Mill Road exit ramp.

Brower Hatcher directs Mid-Ocean Studio in Providence, Rhode Island, a creative team of artists, designers, fabricators, and technical personnel who collaborate on the creation of his sculptures.  His work reflects an interest in the underlying geometry of living organisms and natural systems. Mid-Ocean structures are often multi-layered linear geometric frameworks built of stainless steel. These matrixes often contain various combinations of embedded artifacts, glass, ceramics, metal and LED lights. Suspended objects frequently reflect local historical and cultural influences.  Interactive LED lighting technology provides site-specific responsiveness and illumination. http://www.midoceanstudio.com/the_artist/artist

“I am a strong believer in the power of public art as an instrument of revitalization.”

When Brower visited Greensboro in November 2008 to present his plans for the Southwestern Cornerstone, he talked about the power of art outside museums, radiating its influence and communicating with its environment.  He believes successful public art draws people to it, makes them want to interact with it and opens them up to conversations with others, helping create a sense of community. 

The Southwest Cornerstone is expected to be about 40’ tall.  The structure will be made of stainless steel, with parts of it coated in three additional colors.  Its appearance will change with the weather and the time of day, and objects within the framework will rearrange themselves depending on where the viewer stands.  It will have seating under it allowing viewers to look up into it, and will be lit at night.

Greensboro artist Frank Russell will work with students at Jones Elementary School to find or create the objects that will be embedded in the stainless steel framework.  Although the Cornerstone will not be designed to give viewers a specific message, the way the imbedded objects interact with each other will allow themes to emerge.

Click here to learn more about Brower Hatcher. Brower will present his design proposal in Feburary 2009. As images become available, they will be posted here.

Benches
There will be at least 12 benches created by North Carolina artists. Each artist will be assigned a section and will work with the appropriate neighborhood to determine the character of that neighborhood and use that for inspiration in the design.
Click here to see a video of Gary Gresko describe the Warnersville Neighborhood bench.

Signage
The signage along the Greenway will also be created with an artistic hand. The signage program will include directional and mileage signs, points of interest and attraction signs, and historical and environmental information.

Many other communities have used public art to add unique visual interest and beauty to their parks, trails and greenways. Click here for photos of some of those pieces of public art, though the Greenway's art would, of course, have unique connections to the heritage and culture of Greensboro.