Tree Hugger Project opens in the UnVacant lot
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Thomasville Center for the Arts, in partnership with Hurst Boiler Company, is taking public art to a new level with the UnVacant Lot Experience scheduled to open with its first post-renovation installation on Friday Oct. 5.
In early 2018, the center held a three-day design charrette to develop a vision for a vacant lot on Jackson Street that has been unused for more than a decade. More than 60 people, including artists, project sponsors, neighbors and city representatives, gathered together to design an artistic “learning laboratory” to engage the local community, visitors and public artists alike. With lead funding through an Arts Engagement in American Communities grant from the National Endowment for the Arts, over the last six months, local businesses and residents have contributed more than $35,000 in materials and funding to improve the space and provide enhanced accessibility.
With the intent to turn the property into a community converging point in the city’s budding creative district, the aptly titled UnVacant Lot will open on Friday, Oct. 5 during downtown Thomasville’s Sip & Stroll event and concert in the Ritz Amphitheater. The space will open with the first art installation, the Tree Hugger Project, which is a collaboration between the center and Brookwood School’s Foundations of Innovation class. Led by teachers Rob Clendenin and Joshua Hanke and center artists in residence, Bob Copper and Sarah Painter, students were challenged to create an educational art exhibit to align with the center’s 23rd Plantation Wildlife Arts Festival mission. Students aim to encourage visitors to think deeply about caring for our land with a message that promotes the importance of trees and the critical role timber management plays in sustaining a healthy long-leaf pine ecosystem. “Public art can impact a city like nothing else can,” said the center’s Public Art Director, Darlene Crosby Taylor. “Having a dedicated space for public art will allow us to experiment with ideas to engage with our community on a regular basis. We chose the lot on Jackson Street due to the proximity to the new Ritz Amphitheater. Over the course of a year, tens of thousands of people will have the chance to experience art in the open. We hope the entire community will feel welcome to enjoy the space any time of day and take pride in what we have created together.”
After experiencing the UnVacant Lot, visitors are encouraged to stroll through the amphitheater and stop in at the center’s newly renovated visual arts building featuring new galleries and open art studios.
For more information, contact Taylor, at (229) 2211859 or dtaylor@thomasvillearts. org.
Founded in 1986, Thomasville Center for the Arts is committed to serving as a catalyst for arts education, artistic expression and the creative economy The Center has two locations: 600 E. Washington St., in the historic East Side School building and 209 W Remington Ave. in the heart of The Bottom, Thomasville’s creative district.
For more information visit www.thomasvillearts. org.
Brookwood School
Located in Thomasville, GA, Brookwood School is a private school for grades JK-12. Students benefit from a challenging academic program, fine and performing arts, competitive athletics, and a wide selection of extracurricular activities.