Just as our newly formed committtee, Arlington Public Art, is beginning to gain some traction in town, and as Arlington is beginning to establish itself as an arts and culture destination, we mourn the the beautiful mural that graced the side of an empty building at the Arlington Heights MBTA depot. The
mural project won a Gold Star from the Massachusetts Cultural Council when it was created in 2008.
Tova's website features a
photo gallery from the project's creation.
The mural was painted by Dearborn Academy students and members of the Arlington community. It was much loved. It had become a destination and a landmark. It was historical, lively, fun and brightened a very bleak site.We miss it.
We understand that all public art is temporary, more or less, but there was no warning to the public about the construction work on the building that appeared in early March. Without casting blame, Arlington Public Art expresses sadness and concern that the public was not informed about the fact that the building was given by the MBTA to the Massachusetts Commission for the Blind to be a convenience store run by visually impaired, and the mural would be dismantled.
What can we do, now that the damage has been done? Letters to the editor of the Arlington Advocate, social media to discuss, and a process created so that it doesn't happen again.
I would suggest a new Town position, that of "Arts and Culture Liaison". Among many other things, this person would keep track of public art, artists and stakeholders, and be able to refer questions about ownership to the appropriate parties.
From Monica Jimenez's article in Wicked Local: Four windows and a door have been installed, the first step toward
turning the previously unused depot into a convenience store to be
managed by people with disabilities. Called The Right Spot, the project is being sponsored by the MBTA and
the Mass. Commission for the Blind’s Small Enterprise Program, according
to a sign in the window.
"It will be a place where patrons of the MBTA waiting for the bus and
neighbors will avail themselves of food, coffee, newspapers, lottery
tickets and other merchandise," read a document by DellaMora
Architecture & Project Management, dated March 3 and presented to
the town sometime last year, according to MBTA spokesman Joe Pesaturo.
"The proposed work will transform this building, provide a welcoming
establishment at the heart of an important transportation hub for the
MBTA along a busy avenue in an important business center for the City of
Arlington."
But a number of staff members at Dearborn Academy believe the door and
windows have disrupted the mural, which the school’s students
researched, designed and helped paint, according to Dearborn Director
Howard Rossman. "I think it’s too bad there wasn’t further planning around it," Rossman
said. "Possibly if people were able to get together prior to the
construction, we may have been able to come up with another plan about
where to put the doors or how to preserve the mural, which I think is
seen as a very positive asset to the town."
Dreamed up by Cambridge artist Tova Speter, funded by the Arlington
Cultural Council, and recognized with a Gold Star award for
collaboration and excellence from the Massachusetts Cultural Council,
the public mural (Arlington’s first) highlights historical buildings and
events, according to Speter’s webpage about the project. Shown on the mural: Paul Revere’s ride, the Old Schwamb Mill, Uncle
Sam, old trolleys, the Minuteman Bikeway, and Spy Pond. A sign that
reads "Entering Arlington" is also shown.
The good news is that Arlington now has a way to address this. The newly formed Arlington Cultural Commission held a meeting to hear from Tova Speter and Howard Rossman, headmaster of Dearborn Academy on May 2.
Their concerns were expressed, and it was agreed that the Town needs a way to protect public art and to allow a process for decommissioning art.
The commission will come up with a set of recommendations for the Arlington Board of Selectman as to how to prevent public art from being dismantled without a public process.
