Arlington Public Art

Old space gone, new space coming!

2012-01-30T11:53:00.000-08:00

view from the Coldwell Banker offices looking out towards Mass Ave.

Thank you to Frank Pasciuto, landlord at 12 Medford Street where the AWP has been ongoing since July 2011. The space got rented, so the Windows Project had to disassemble Kevin Duffy's wonderful pieces and vacate the space for the new renters, a used home appliance shop. It was a great little spot, and we are very grateful that we had it for so long.

Our new space is in front of the Coldwell Banker Real Estate offices in what used to be an ATM area. It is perfect for larger installations and has 30 feet of window space! I am very excited to find and feature artists who are interested in transforming the whole shebang.

Also looking out toward Mass Ave. The old ATM counter is still there. The space is lit during all night!

The new spot is much bigger, brighter, and more visible - 635 Massachusetts Avenue in Arlington Center, across from Robbins Library. Thank you to RM Realty for their generosity in loaning us this space.

Exciting news! Funding for the Windows Project!

2012-01-14T14:37:00.000-08:00

I am delighted to let everyone know that the Arlington Windows Project which I have been curating since July 2011, has been awarded funding by the Arlington Cultural Council, a local organization sponsored and funded by the Massachusetts Cultural Council. This funding will allow me to award a small stipend to exhibiting artists and myself as curator, as well as cover incidentals like wire, nails, and tape.

Not only is it nice to have some funding, but the award validates this project and contributes to the community's awareness of public art and how it can enhance the life of our town.

Kevin Duffy in Arlington Windows Project for January

2012-01-13T11:54:00.000-08:00

Kevin Duffy, installation, foam insulation and spray paint

Kevin Duffy, untitled sculpture installation, foam insulation and spray paint

Kevin Duffy works as a stone sculpture and monument conservator.

In his words, " I wanted to explore the possibilities of working with foam insulation sheets, and the alternative possibilities it offers as opposed to marble and granite. I did not begin this project with an set plan, except to fill the space. As I began to explore the technical possibilities of this material the results began to evolve. I like to build contrasts in my work by fusing different aesthetic elements. I chose to develop a classic, almost Chippendale style for the bottom support of each piece. For the remaining part, I simply let the material guide me. The birdman figure is loosely based on soapstone pieces by native carvers from the Cape Dorset area in Nunavut Canada. The laminated shapes on the larger piece are just something that evolved as I glued the remaining scraps together and shaped them with a disk sander."

Additional Sculptural and Stone Monument Conservation and Fabrication work
by Kevin Duffy, can be viewed at:

www.duffysculpture.net

www.lineandstoneinc.com

PUBLIC MEETING JAN. 12 - all invited!

2012-01-10T08:33:00.000-08:00

The second of our public conversations on public art,this time in East Arlington will take place on Thursday, January 12 at 7 pm at the Arlington Center for the Arts. We could use your input, advice and support. These meetings are to inform the community about Arlington Public Art, the committee, and how we are hoping to pave the way for public art in this town.

We also hope to inform people and gain support for the warrant articles we would like to bring to Town meeting this spring, 2012. The first warrant article would request to move Article 7 regarding signs of the zoning by‐ laws and move that article to the Town’s General By‐Laws. This action would remove this law from the Zoning Board authority and put it into general town governance. The second warrant article would remove the phrase “attractive to the eye,” from the Article 7 law which the town attorney believes would make public art allowable if both articles are approved. We hope we can count on your help in gaining support among Town Meeting members for these warrant articles.

ARLINGTON PUBLIC ART:
COMMUNITY CONVERSATIONS

Please join us on:

Thursday, January 12, 2012, 7pm
Arlington Center for the Arts
41 Foster Street, Arlington
and
Tuesday, March 6, 2012, 7pm
At a location to be announced in Arlington Heights

Come talk about the future of Public Art in Arlington,
give your input, and share your ideas!

Arlington Public Art is a group that facilitates the awareness and creation of public art in Arlington. The Public Art Committee is a made of individual citizens and representatives of the Arlington Center for the Arts, the Arlington Cultural Council, the Arlington Planning Department, the Arlington Vision 20/20 committee, the Arlington Tourism and Economic Development Committee, Sustainable Arlington and the Arlington Public Schools K-12 Visual Arts Department .

Visit us on Facebook
For more information, visit www.acarts.org/public_art.php

Hope to see you Thursday.

Jeanne Williamson in Arlington Windows Project

2011-11-20T16:58:00.000-08:00

Natick-based mixed media artist Jeanne Williamson is the latest Arlington Windows Project artist. Her installation of printed fabric will be on view at 12 Medford Street, Arlington Center, through December.

Jeanne says, "I am very interested in working with the different grid patterns of construction fences. My artwork is a combination of printmaking, painting, collage, and sometimes stitching. At the present time, I am working on boards, or with fabric that has been stiffened, so it appears more like paper or plastic."

Jeanne currently has an outdoor installation in the Kendall Square area, at the future site of the Constellation Center.

These fascinating works combine printmaking and painting. I love it when you look through the holes of one of Jeanne's pieces to see the others through them!

Jodi Colella - Arlington Windows Project for October-November

2011-10-21T12:27:00.000-07:00

Jodi Colella is a mixed media sculptor and teacher who explores the character of materials while creating abstractions of natural forms. She lives and works in Somerville, MA. Jodi's work is currently on view in our streetside gallery at 12 Medford St., an empty storefront which landlord, Frank Pasciutto, has generously lent to us while he waits for a business to move in. Thank you, Frank!

Jodi's sculptures, "Synthesis" and "Ghost", are both created from recycled women's clothing, and are fashioned using a crochet technique inspired by Irish Crochet.

In Jodi's words:

"I shape constructions that mimic the patterns of science and reflect on the temporal nature of growth and change. I’m interested in the biological world where both the micro and macroscopic exist as metaphors for human expression. Projects originate with the use of traditional handwork practices that I deconstruct and combine with inventive materials and technique. In the exploration of contradiction and raw emotions I attempt to communicate the intangible; biomorphic abstractions that both attract and repel.

The piece in the large window, Synthesis, is fabricated in a manner similar to traditional Irish Crochet where modular designs are crocheted over a cord with fine thread and then assembled. Invented in the mid 1800’s as a way of enabling families and communities to survive the potato famine, it was a defining moment in Irish history, signifying their faith in the possibility of transcendent human achievement.

My motifs magnify and morph the traditionally delicate designs into large bendable shapes. Crocheted from recycled women’s clothing over a fat upholstery cord and 14 gauge wire they combine into a primordial cellular form. Painted on its exterior to reference the cotton ecru thread of the original craft, one can glimpse inside to view its true colors. And just like a cell membrane, each stitch works as a gatekeeper on the surface simultaneously preserving the self and expressing identity."

Jodi's studio is located at Joy Street in Somerville, MA. You can email her to comment or ask her questions about her work. Visit her blog to find out more about her working process and news.

Ghost, Jodi Colella, 2011

Synthesis, Jodi Colella, 2011

Jodi's work will be on view through November 18 at 12 Medford St., Arlington Center, across from the Regent Theater.

Murals can combat Graffitti!

2011-10-03T14:46:00.000-07:00

In many communities around the US, public art and murals have helped to create healthier places to live and to discourage vandalism.

From the Mural Arts Program website:

The Mural Arts Program began in 1984 as a component of the Philadelphia Anti-Graffiti Network, an effort spearheaded by then Mayor Wilson Goode to eradicate the graffiti crisis plaguing the city. The Anti-Graffiti Network hired muralist Jane Golden to reach out to graffiti writers and to redirect their energies from destructive graffiti writing to constructive mural painting.

Jane Golden quickly befriended the graffiti writers and was impressed by their raw artistic talent and their self-taught knowledge of art history. She recognized the amazing creative force they represented, and she began to provide opportunities for them to channel their creative talent into mural-making. Mural painting also provided a support structure for these young men and women to refine their artistic skills, empowering them to take an active role in beautifying their own neighborhoods. The murals they created instantly added color, beauty, and life to an old, industrial city struggling with decades of economic distress and population loss. The results of the program were nothing less than magical. From the beginning, Golden witnessed how mural-making changed lives and how the murals themselves began to mend the aesthetic fabric of the city.

In 1996, Mayor Ed Rendell announced that the Anti-Graffiti Network would be reorganized into the Mural Arts Program, with Golden as the director. At the same time, Golden established a nonprofit organization, the Philadelphia Mural Arts Advocates, to raise funds and provide other support to the nationally-recognized program. Today, Mural Arts is an innovative and successful public/private partnership that encompasses both the city agency and the nonprofit.

Arlington Public Art at Town Day

2011-09-20T07:48:00.000-07:00

We hope you stopped by one of our supporting organizations to pick up a postcard with the image of our planned banner for Spy Pond! 1000 postcards were printed and will be available free at local stores and libraries to help create awareness for more public art in Arlington. Did you stop by 12 Medford Street to view the most recent Arlington Windows exhibit?

Public Art presentation scheduled for Wed. October 26, 7:30 pm

2011-09-20T07:44:00.000-07:00

Please join us for a free dialog about public art on Wednesday evening, October 26, at 7:30 pm, in the Robbins Library Community Room, Arlington Center. Don Benjamin, Arlington Town Planner, will present fascinating visuals about public art and the positive impact it can have in a community. Don has a collection of images that show the incredible range and diversity of exciting public art all over the country and within Eastern Massachusetts.

Nashawtuc Sled

2011-09-12T14:09:00.000-07:00

Sculptor, Bill Turville, in front of "Nashawtuc Sled"

Bill Turville in Arlington Windows Project for September

2011-09-07T13:17:00.000-07:00

Arlington-based architect, sculptor, and art educator, Bill Turville, is showing three sculptures at 12 Meford St. in Arlington this month.

Bill has long been a proponent of environmental activism. Starting with his efforts while still a student at Pratt to help start the first recycling center in Brooklyn after World War II, Bill has found a way to include his activism into his art making. Bill's work is filled with a wry sense of humor combined with his love of textures and materials. His work appeals to every age level and can be read on many different levels.

In his own words, "I love working in three dimensions with nearly any medium and enjoy experimenting with each one and combination of each. I also enjoy relating some of my work to a space or a cause or a theme. I try to impart this enthusiasm to my students, encouraging them to find creative and new parts of themselves to make things that have never been seen on earth before. Some of my students, younger and older, dive right in and others are more tentative but all eventually find that they can do something new and exciting and contribute this to the world, their world, creating their world. It is all about lighting up the creativity I completely believe is in each individual of any age."

See more of Bill's work

Nashawtuc Sled, 2011

A Taste of the Past:

Lunch for the Game Boy.

William Turville

2007

materials: toy and game pieces salvaged from

Concord DPW Drop-off/Swap Off Oct. 2007;

recycled steel skewers and tray

Skewered increasingly rare toy and game parts

kabobs with choice old-school puzzle pieces

garnish served on tray ready for barbecuing.

[Cook to perfection in one nanosecond

in super-heated electronic game market.

Once served ages four to ten.]

Arlington Advocate article

2011-08-18T09:50:00.000-07:00

Thanks to Jim Haddadin, Arlington Advocate reporter, for covering the Arlington Windows Project and our town's journey toward making public art a reality in Arlington. See the article HERE.

Spy Pond Mural - on our wishlist!

2011-08-11T06:19:00.000-07:00

Arlington was the home of Cyrus Dallin, American sculptor,1861 to1944. Though born in Utah, Dallin lived in and raised his family in Arlinton. Dallin is known best for his public sculptures, several of which grace the town of Arlington. The Cyrus Dallin Museum is located in the Jefferson Cutter House in Arlington Center.

How ironic, then, that Arlington does not currently embrace contemporary public art and that there is no official sanctioning of public art.

Walking down the Minuteman Bike Trail near my home in East Arlington, I come upon the wide, bright blue wall of the Arlington Boys and Girls Club which overlooks our local treasure, Spy Pond. It has long seemed to me like a perfect spot for a mural. I proposed to our committee, Arlington Public Art, a digitally produced mesh banner that would hang across the 100 foot expanse. We held a competition at Arlington High School in the spring for images that reflect the natural and recreational resources of Spy Pond. Four young artists' works were selected.

We have the Arlington Boys and Girls Club's permission to mount the mural. Now we need the Town of Arlington to give us the go ahead. Then we need to raise the money. We hope that local businesses and banks will see the efficacy of helping to fund such a worthwhile and uplifting project.

The mural celebrates the teen artists in our midst, and would bring positive attention to Arlington as a community that embraces the arts. Further, it would bring tourists to Arlington and focus attention on the wonderful resource that is the Arlington Boys and Girls Club.

If you would like to see more public art in Arlington, please join our volunteer group, Arlington Public Art. Our meetings are open to the public, and held at the Arlington Center for the Arts on the third Thursday of each month, at 9 am.

Email me if you want to help our cause and promote public art!

And more publicity!

2011-08-11T05:58:00.000-07:00

The Arlington Advocate covered our first Windows Project! Read this.

First Official Publicity!

2011-08-08T09:46:00.000-07:00

Check out this nice article in the Arlington Patch about our debut exhibit!

Our very first Arlington Window Project installation!

2011-08-06T14:47:00.000-07:00

Karen Meninno, Boston sculptor, presents her installation, "Object Oriented", at 12 Medford Street in Arlington Center, across from the Regent Theater. The installation will be on view from August 6 to September 6, and possibly longer.
The installation is part of the Arlington Windows Project and Arlington Public Art, and curated by Adria Arch, Arlington artist and former Education Director of the Arlington Center for the Arts.

Object Oriented at 2 Medford St., Arlington MA

The pillows before they were put in the window.

The Arlington Windows Project seeks to pair untenanted storefronts near Mass Ave throughout Arlington with artists who propose ideas that they would like to create in the space. This is an effort to start a dialog about public art in Arlington and to enliven the town with visual interest that is not of a commercial nature.

Karen is inspired by traditional Indian textiles and decorative arts.

A traditional paisley design

Presented as an installation in a store front window, the soft sculptures seek attention from passersby and ask of the viewer to take a moment and ask why are these things here, in the same way that we may approach someone from a different culture or belief system – hopefully, with an open mind and good will. Karen’s art investigates issues of culture, identity, alienation, cohesive forces, the concept of home, the city scape, and otherworldly civilizations that you might imagine on another planet.

Drawing by Karen Meninno

Karen was born in New Delhi, India and raised in London, England. She earned a computer degree in the UK and moved to Boston 14 years ago. She pursued studies in Fashion Design and Interior Design. Karen graduated with distinction,from Massachusetts College of Art & Design with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in sculpture. She is currently Co-Assistant Director at Kingston Gallery in Boston’s South End SOWA Arts District.

You can write to Karen at kmeninno@hotmail.com