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Dublin Bicentennial Public Artwork: Artists’ final presentations scheduled for Feb. 4, 2010

DUBLIN, Ohio— (Dec. 15, 2009) Dublin Arts Council (DAC) Executive Director David S. Guion announced today that the three artist finalists for the Dublin Bicentennial Public Artwork project will present their proposals to the selection committee and the community on Thurs., Feb. 4, 2010 from 6 to 9 p.m. in the Abbey Theater, 5600 Post Rd., inside the Dublin Community Recreation Center in Dublin, Ohio.

The three finalists for the $150,000 commission were chosen last month by a selection committee which includes a Dublin community representative, a representative of the Dublin Historical Society, a DAC board member, a public artist and a public art expert. The committee reviewed comprehensive application materials from a national pool of 119 applicants representing 27 states for nearly two weeks before meeting to thoughtfully deliberate and select the finalists, which include:

            Brower Hatcher – Hatcher is a Providence, R.I., public artist with more than 25 years of experience building more than 40 large-scale public art projects. His sculptures are often ‘cellular matrixes’ that create prismatic effects, further enhanced by an embedded cloud of artifacts that relate to a site’s influences and culture, resulting in landmark public art that enhances the sense of community and place. Hatcher works at the historic Steel Yard in Providence as the artistic director of Mid-Ocean Studios, Inc.

            Thomas Sayre  - Based in Raleigh, N.C., Sayre co-founded the multidisciplinary design firm, Clearscapes architecture and art, in 1980. As a sculptor, he has been involved in the design and construction of more than 30 projects, ranging from children’s museums to historic renovations. Sayre works in a variety of permanent materials, including concrete, stone, terrazzo, fiberglass and glass marbles. His projects are a result of the confluence of site, budget, social and cultural context and the perceived spirit of the project.

            Suikang Zhao – Mr. Zhao, who lives in New York City, is an assistant professor in the Fine Arts Department at State University of New York. His public artworks are not meant to decorate the space, but rather are rooted in the existing architectural concept. Layering context is the key to the artist’s inspiration. Through his artwork, Zhao re-thinks visual elements in terms of displaced environments and minds in the context of today’s world. Zhao’s public artworks are integrated into the organic structure of a particular space and reflect both the cultural / social environment of the region and the people.

The finalists will each be given up to 45 minutes to present their detailed site-specific proposals, which are anticipated to include digital and physical representations of the projects and a project timeline. Members of the community are invited to attend and will be encouraged to submit comment cards for review by the selection committee, which will meet immediately after the presentations to deliberate. Questions from the audience will be taken via cards submitted to a moderator.

The artists and the selection committee will also have reviewed public comments about the project, which are being collected by DAC and the City of Dublin through Dec. 18.

Feb. 5 is being held as an alternate date for deliberations to continue if the selection committee is unable to reach consensus the evening of the presentations. DAC anticipates notifying the winner of the commission and the community the week of Feb. 8.

The location for the installation of the original, permanent, site-specific public artwork is the Karrer Barn property, 225 S. High St., in Historic Dublin, which is owned by the city. The artwork is being commissioned by DAC in recognition of the City of Dublin’s 2010 Bicentennial.

The Dublin Art in Public Places program is administered by Dublin Arts Council and is funded, in part, through an endowment of Bed Tax funds from the City of Dublin.

For more information about any of Dublin Arts Council’s programs, exhibitions and events, call (614) 889-7444 or visit www.dublinarts.org. Dublin Arts Council (DAC), is located at 7125 Riverside Dr. in Dublin, Ohio. Hours are Tues., 10am-7pm; Wed./Thurs./Fri., 10am–5pm; and Sat., 11am-2pm. DAC is supported in part by the City of Dublin’s Hotel/Motel tax endowment and the Ohio Arts Council, which helps fund Dublin Arts Council and its programs with state tax dollars to encourage economic growth, educational excellence and cultural enrichment for all Ohioans. DAC engages the community, cultivates creativity and fosters life-long learning through the arts.

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