Responding to a Facebook poll on five outdoor sculptures, the Alpharetta City Council has agreed to spend $24,000 to acquire for the city’s permanent collection the artwork that got the most votes: “The Laborer.”
The sculpture, by artist Mike Wasol, has been on temporary loan to the city as part of the Miscellany outdoor sculpture program. The work is interactive, “allowing the viewer to step inside the sculpture to see a nighttime sky filled with stars,” according to a staff report.
The acquisition is conditioned on the sculpture remaining in its current location at Brooke Street Park as long as it is feasible.
In a related issue, the council met in workshop session to hear a presentation on “Omnium Gatherum,” an Outdoor Art on Loan Project that will replace Miscellany this summer. Arts Alpharetta presented concepts for eight sculptures to be displayed.
Council members expressed support but raised concerns over Phil Proctor’s “Solar Wind” because of its 50-foot height. They asked Arts Alpharetta to replace it with one of two alternate works.
