Among the many projects Fayette County Commission Chair Steve Brown wants to tackle is making his community a lot more attractive. But he’s not looking to add fancy landscapes or new architectural styles; what Brown really wants is to add more art to public spaces.
“It’s something that’s been eating at me for years, and a lot of other people have had the same thoughts,” said Brown. “We’ve got a very engaged populace here, but we don’t do a lot in certain forms of the arts, particularly the visual arts. Fortunately, I’ve found people who are willing to join in the effort.”
Those supporters have answered Brown’s call to volunteer for the county’s first Public Art Committee that will develop projects to increase the number of outdoor art installations. For the last several months, about 15 residents have been meeting to brainstorm and share ideas.
“It’s a very grassroots project; we don’t have a foundation, and I purposely don’t want to go that way,” said Brown. “We don’t have a museum or a high-paid professional staff. We’re doing it ourselves, but fortunately we have quite a few art teachers from local schools and arts studio owners who have offered their help.”
Earlier this month, the group brought on an intern from the Savannah College of Art and Design to get projects off the ground. Among the first order of business is identifying locations that lend themselves to being improved with art.
“We want to start with county-owned property so we can get a feel for this,” said Brown. “Once we do a few, we have some private businesses that might let us do murals.”
Among the top spots identified to date are the water treatment facility in Peachtree City. “It has large blank walls on the tanks where we’re going to do some sort of aquatic theme,” said Brown.
Another location is a roundabout where the circular center has a 20-foot wide area idea for some sort of sculpture. The county’s fire hydrants may also be getting an artistic makeover. “We might even have a competition for decorating them,” said Brown.
Two locations Brown would like to change are ones he sees on a daily basis. The first is the fountain area outside the county’s administration facility, and the second is the building where he’s worked for four years.
“The fountain is a tricky situation because it’s very old, very tired, but the plaza floor around it has historical mementos in it, and the walkways memorialize people who died in various wars and conflicts,” said Brown. “We want to bring color and life to the area but also maintain that respectful aura of having it as a historical site and memorial.”
As for the county offices building, Brown is ready for a major change.
“Every wall in this building is what I call ‘institutional powder blue’ with white trim,” he said. “It looks like 1950s psych ward, and it can drive you nuts to walk through here. When I first started working here, I only lasted three weeks before I went out and bought paint to change my office to green with a brown accent wall. I’m sure we can do the same for other parts of the county.”
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