The art of improvement
Public art advocates say displays foster pride, economic development
When the “Coke to Spokes” sculpture was unveiled at the intersection of First and Third streets, not much was located in that section of Connellsville, said Daniel Cocks, executive director of the Fayette County Cultural Trust.
The metal sculpture near the Great Allegheny Passage showed bicycle spokes rising up from coke furnaces, evoking both the area’s coal heritage and the cycling that brings thousands of cyclists through the city each year.
Artist Jody Best talked at the dedication about the positive response she’d already heard from people. And she also made a prescient nod to the future.
“She made a comment that usually public art brings economic development, and who would have figured out a few years later we would have a hotel there in the Comfort Inn?” Cocks said.
The bright splash of color or intricate sculpture at what would otherwise be a blank wall or an empty parking lot can have reverberating effects, from a momentary boost to someone’s day, or the longer-term benefits of bringing more tourism and spending.
Many such pieces can be found throughout the region, a combination of artists pursuing a vision and groups willing to provide the backing for the materials and work needed to transform a sketch into something that becomes part of the fabric of the area.
The Fayette County Cultural Trust in Connellsville launched in 2007 with the aim of enriching the area’s quality of life and also to create partnerships that can revitalize communities and grow their economies.
Cocks sees the trust as carrying on a longstanding legacy. Public art in Connellsville goes back to at least 1906, when the Coal and Coke Arch was erected to commemorate the city’s centennial.
Public art helps create identity and a sense of place, Cocks said. The trust has also provided upkeep for older examples of public art, like the bronze statue of Col. William Crawford built a century ago.
They’ve also spearheaded art projects along Crawford Avenue, like birdhouses and a mural of film pioneer and Connellsville native Edwin S. Porter.
“It kind of entices the bikers from the Great Allegheny Passage to go over the Crawford Avenue Bridge and maybe take a tour of what’s on the other side of the bridge,” Cocks said.
When the trust was founded, about 90% of Connellsville’s downtown was blighted, Cocks said. The public art has helped renew interest. So have other placemaking tools, like the installation of bike racks and benches so the cyclists who come down from the trail have the chance to wander downtown.
When the trust sees a good spot for a public art piece, it will approach the building owner and ask permission. Once they commission an artist, their rendering again goes to the building owner for approval.
The latest project is a glass mosaic on the side of the Black Box Theater with the word “Love,” which will be surrounded by flowers being painted by local students.
“Places like Youghiogheny Glass, they donated the glass, so that’s less money we have to put into it,” Cocks said.
Costs vary, depending on size, materials or equipment needed. The “Love” mural, being done by Appalachian Creativity Center, only cost about $1,500. Another work on the side of a nearby church cost between $5,000 and $10,000, some coming from the lift the artist needed to reach the top of the three-story mural.
Cocks said there’s no shortage of public art within the county, like the bronze statues and bandshell mural in Uniontown’s Storey Square, and murals at Ohiopyle State Park.
“Public art basically just brightens up an area, puts smiles on people’s faces, and makes them proud that they’re living where they live,” he said.
Cultivating civic pride
One example of civic pride recently went up in Canonsburg, where a mural celebrates both the town’s history and America’s 250th anniversary.
Artists James Sulkowski and Mike Melone completed 12 oil paintings of pivotal parts of Canonsburg’s history. The paintings were combined on computer, then printed out on a thick vinyl material and installed like wallpaper on the side of the Rusty Gold Brewing building.
“It really looks like it was painted on the wall,” Sulkowski said. “Just amazing. It should last at least a generation — probably 25 years, hopefully more.”
The Washington County Tourism Promotion Agency provided a $25,000 grant, which was supplemented by donations from several local businesses, Sulkowski said.
The project was a year in the making. Sulkowski and Malone began by brainstorming ideas for what images would represent Canonsburg. They also incorporated suggestions, such as a natural gas well.
While they weren’t given guidelines, Canonsburg Borough Council had final approval on the design, Sulkowski said.
Sulkowski said a QR code is also being added to the bottom of the painting linking to a short video about Canonsburg’s businesses.
Since the mural was unveiled, people have been stopping Sulkowski on his regular dog walks to tell him how much they enjoy the piece.
“I think it makes them feel proud, too, because this one in particular is about Canonsburg,” he said. “I think it basically inspires people… It’s a positive, happy, uplifting kind of reaction. That’s what I hope all my art does.”
Canonsburg Mayor David Rhome said the piece helps build a sense of place.
“I believe the art that we’re displaying in our community not only shows the talent of the individuals that have been a part of that, but it displays the love of what is all on that mural, talking about years and years of the past and years and years of the present,” he said.
Washington County commissioners liked the end result in Canonsburg so much that they’re thinking of similar murals in Washington, Donora, and other towns in the county, Sulkowski said.
More communities are taking up the idea as a way to bring excitement to the landscape.
The first addition of public art in Waynesburg’s downtown has come from local artist Farley Toothman, who recently mounted the side of a Volkswagen Beetle on the side of a garage on Morgan Street. Last spring, he enlisted students in an art class in Central Greene High School to paint the Bug in a ’60s tie-dyed motif.
Toothman received a zoning variance for the display over the summer. Council is now developing an ordinance regulating art displays in the borough.
Certain topics wouldn’t be allowed, like promoting a business or depicting illegal acts.
Other clauses cover the kind of material that can be used, mandate protection against weather and graffiti, and lay out the responsibility for maintenance.
Assistant Manager Bryan Cumberledge said having rules in place helps strike a balance between creative displays and possible eyesores.
“We realize that having artwork and everything in a downtown is a good way to revitalize everything and make it more appealing, and people get to do things,” he said. “But we want to make sure that when we start it, we did it right and we protected the people that need protecting, and make sure that people took responsibility for them later.”
The display could inspire more in Waynesburg. Others haven’t formally approached the borough yet, but Cumberledge said he’s heard of plans in the works for a mural on the building next to the former Jimmie’s Lunch on High and Morgan streets.
Eye-catching displays like that could make someone want to get out of their car and take a look — and potentially stop in at a local business while they’re at it, Cumberledge said.
“I think it would really give it a curb appeal and make somebody want to stop and take pictures and kind of spend some time downtown,” he said. “And that’s one way of revitalizing, bringing it back to life.”