By Mark Wineka
mwineka@salisburypost.com
The Salisbury Sculpture Show, “Discover What’s Outside,” has accomplished what the Public Art Committee was looking for ó people are interested.
“We know people are looking at it,” Public Art Committee Chairperson Barbara Perry said. “We keep running out of brochures.”
The outdoor show officially started April 1 and will run through December. It has brought together 14 pieces from 13 different N.C. and S.C. artists and spread them throughout the downtown.
Perry and Urban Design Planner Lynn Raker said the children’s reaction to the sculptures has been special, with many youngsters treating the task of finding the artwork like a scavenger hunt.
Katherine Apple’s “Just for Fun” horse sculpture at the Rowan Museum and Roger Martin’s “Jeremiah” bullfrog sculpture at Liberty and Main streets are two of the favorites among children, the women said.
All of the 14 sculptures are available for purchase.
Raker said she was pleased with the downtown settings found for the sculptures “and how they look like they belong.”
“We’ve had a lot of interest and a lot of questions since they’ve gone up,” Mayor Susan Kluttz said.
Brochures showing photographs of each piece and a map with their locations are available at the Rowan County Visitors Center at the Gateway building, 204 E. Innes St.
Raker worked one-on-one with the artists in getting the pieces installed. Perry also thanked property owners, merchants, Ed and Susan Norvell, First Presbyterian Church and all the committee members for their help.
She said it is a “very hardworking group.”
The Public Art Committee received a $10,000 matching grant from the Norvells through the Salisbury Community Foundation to help with the sculpture show.
Anne Scott Clement headed the selection committee, and artists were selected from an open application process.
The show’s Web site, www.salisburysculpture.com, provides information on the show and the artists, besides providing links to other activities and events.
On May 27, a judge from Chapel Hill will choose the best in show, which will be awarded June 20.
Kluttz said the show is a positive experience and a great enhancement for the downtown.
Councilman Bill Burgin said the sculptures are something everyone in the city and county should see.
“It is spectacular,” he said. “I’ve had a ton of fun going around” and finding the sculptures in their locations.
He commended the Public Art Committee for bringing fun to the city with the sculptures and the History and Art Trail.