Columbus is seeing an influx of public art pieces, with three new works recently making their debuts in neighborhoods across the city.
Social Justice Mural
Showcased in Downtown Columbus at the Washington Gladden Social Justice Park, a new mural titled Social Justice LEGENDS is on display at the corner of Broad Street and Cleveland Avenue.
Columbus-based Formation Studio created the 100-foot mural that’s composed of more than 160 names of past social justice leaders and 50 terms or slogans that highlight social justice causes and issues. Together the names and phrases spell out the word ‘Justice.’
“I and other park representatives are delighted with the Social Justice Legends mural,” said Tom Worley, director of Gladden Social Justice Park. “The mural is bold in color and has a sense of movement given the profiles of people protesting in the background and the imagery of sound waves reminding us that the voices of these legends still ring true today.”
The mural will be displayed through 2023 and is sponsored in part by Orange Barrel Media.
For more information on the park, visit www.socialjusticepark.org. Learn more about the names included on the mural here.
Franklinton Slingshot
The Franklinton Arts District is home to a new giant, 20-foot, “non-slingable” slingshot sculpture, complete with concrete fingers. The slingshot, which was dedicated during Franklinton Fridays in May, is located at the Lucas Street Plaza in the River & Rich development (where Lucas Street dead-ends into Sullivant Avenue).
Artist Andrew Lundberg built the slingshot, which weighs over six tons, over the last eight months, primarily at the Idea Foundry, another cornerstone of the Arts District. Lundberg says the sculpture was a big commitment, but he hopes it will be impactful and interactive.
“Franklinton and Columbus in general is in its renaissance and you can feel the momentum, and being an artist I liked how this has a childlike mischievous nature of a slingshot,” said Lundberg. “Super proud of [it] and hope it can be a must-see for residents and visitors to Columbus. ‘Art Makes Cbus’ ‘seems to be starting to come true from a public art perspective.”
For more information about the designer, visit www.lundbergarts.com.
South Side Monument
The Parsons Avenue Merchants Association (PAMA) and the Neighborhood Design Center came together to create a gateway sign and sculpture for the South Side. Funding came from Nationwide Children’s Hospital, The Columbus Foundation and the Tom E. Dailey Foundation to bring to life a 12-foot high, yellow steel, tree-like sculpture.
The PAMA memorial sculpture marks the north boundary of the South Side, and represents the early 20th century heavy industry, steel mills and glass factories that called the neighborhood home. The welcome sign sits on the corner of South Lane and Parsons Avenue, clearly visible to motorists and pedestrians.
The work will continue to evolve over time.
“It will achieve its intended effect in full when used as a monumental topiary, with blooming plants and evergreens weaving through and over it,” said Raffi Tomassian, designer of the sculpture. “We find that as a compelling metaphor for the future of the South Side of Columbus: the steel, in a daring and weightless form providing support for plants; the natural and the man made in timeless harmony.”
For more information, visit www.columbusndc.org.