Hamilton’s City of Sculpture collection will officially grow by five this weekend as new works of art will be dedicated in two different ceremonies.
Dedication of the PAINT — Partnering with Artists in New Turf — project will begin at 12:30 p.m. Saturday near the McDonald’s restaurant at the corner of High Street and Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard, according to City of Sculpture President Mike Dingeldein.
A second ceremony highlighting three new metal sculptures will follow approximately a half-hour later at RiversEdge Amphitheater.
The PAINT project was led by former city of Hamilton intern Tyler Bridge with the support of the City of Sculpture.
Proposals by two local artists were selected to be installed under the Jack Kirsch Underpass. Badin High School art teacher Sarah Daniels’ design features local public art landmarks, and InsideOut Studio artist Ashley Parris’ vibrant floral patterns add contrast to the gray walls of the underpass.
Bridge, who is now a student at Georgetown University and will not be able to attend the dedication ceremony, said he is excited about the opportunity to support the urban renaissance of Hamilton’s downtown area through public art.
“Hamilton finds itself at a critical point of redefinition and rebuilding again for the future,” Bridge said in a statement. “It is directly because of people like Mike Dingeldein, philanthropists on the board of the City of Sculpture, and the scores of young people working in Hamilton that this project even exists.”
“It is a partnership, a collaboration, a symbol to all those who doubt Hamilton’s forward-progress that we will not stop rebuilding, we will not stop believing, and that every voice however young or small can change Hamilton forever,” he said.
The three sculptures to be dedicated include two pieces of art by Massachusetts sculptor Dale Rogers, who also has a piece of art installed in Veterans Park as part of Hamilton’s forthcoming dog park.
Gerry Hammond purchased “Guitar” as a memorial for her husband, the late architect Gerry Hammond, Dingeldein said. The other, titled “4 People,” is a recent City of Sculpture acquisition.
The third, “Resurgence” by sculptor Jonathan Hils of Norman, Okla., was the winner of the City of Sculpture’s Outdoor Sculpture Exhibition competition in 2009, which carried a $10,000 purchase prize.
The cost of the all City of Sculpture purchases been funded through private donations and the group’s fundraising activities, including IceFest, which is on track for 2015, Dingeldein said.
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