Some people look at a water treatment plant and see sewage. Others look at it and see artistic opportunity.
Anyone looking at the Crosstown Water Treatment Plant on TDK Boulevard in Peachtree City these days will see an amazingly colorful and intriguing mural, the first major project of the Fayette County Public Arts Committee.
The committee was formed last year to seek and support both temporary and permanent artworks as a way to make public spaces more colorful and interesting. Led by Steve Brown of the Fayette County Board of Commissioners, the committee consists of about a dozen volunteers from various walks of life who share an appreciation for creative expression. They meet regularly to discuss possible projects and follow through with selected ideas.
Brown says the main criteria for projects are that they be fun, fast and flexible. The committee looks for “something people would enjoy doing,” such as the scarecrow-decorating contest held on the downtown Fayetteville square last fall that prompted passersby to stop and take selfies with the scarecrows.
A quick project turnaround helps maintain interest, Brown says, and the committee tries to make its budget cover as many projects as possible. The $60,000 currently designated for arts projects isn’t guaranteed to be renewed, and government support for the arts can be tenuous when money is tight. Large projects must be approved by the county commission.
At 97 feet wide, the Crosstown mural is the largest piece of public art in county history. It was created by 24-year-old artist Pash Lima, whose bold design uses animal and human elements to depict the water cycle.
“I believe that public art is very, very valuable when it comes to what it can do for the human population and its mind state,” Lima says. “A public art project can uplift a community, strengthen ideas, motivate, comfort, and even plant new ideas in people’s minds, whether they are artists or not.”
Not all of the art is outdoors; committee member Samuel Patton’s photographs of Fayette landmarks are displayed in the county administration building.
“I have always been fascinated with history, primarily American, and I wanted to see what I could do to influence our county to incorporate our history as a county into the art projects, ”says Patton, who works in the Clerk of Courts office.
Most of the artwork will be based at government-owned buildings in high-traffic locations, but the committee will also consider projects on private property.
Some art can be utilitarian; the dingy former mailbox used for dropping off tax payments in Fayetteville is now a brightly colored receptacle that declares (reminiscent of famed artist René Magritte), “This is not a mailbox.”
The committee’s next project is painting fanciful fire hydrants near Fayette’s high schools, using student artists. Brown says the committee is also exploring creating a website where Fayette crafters can display and sell their works, like a local Etsy. Restoration of the Heritage Park Fountain is also pending.
So the next time you canvass Fayette County, think of the county as your canvas.
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