STATE ARTS AGENCY

Iowa Arts Council
Des Moines, IA
www.culturalaffairs.org/iac

 

Artists & Communities Host Site: Spencer Area Arts Council
408 North Grand Avenue
Spencer, Iowa 51301
E-mail: hemphill@nwiowa.com
Web site: www.surfiowa.com/spencer/parkart

Millennium Artist:
Nina Smoot-Cain
Muralist
Illinois
E-mail: nscmissy@aol.com

Millennium Artist:
John Pitman Weber
Muralist
Illinois
E-mail: johnw@elmhurst.edu

PROJECT DESCRIPTION

The Midwestern traditions of strong community spirit and volunteerism were major partners in the Artists & Communities residency of artist collaborators Nina Smoot-Cain and John Pitman Weber with the Spencer Area Arts Council of Spencer, Iowa.

An impressive local coalition of School Board and Parks & Recreation representatives, the Iowa Lakes Community College of the Third Age, Parker Historical Museum, the Spencer Chamber of Commerce, Spencer Community Theater, The Daily Reporter newspaper, and radio station KICD was formed to support the project. This community 'Forum' joined with the Arts Council, Smoot-Cain and Pitman Weber, and a number of individuals in facilitating the artists' introduction to the community, coordinating residency activities, and encouraging broad local participation.

As a consequence, over 1,100 area residents, aged 6 to 96, contributed to the design and creation of a permanent mosaic sculpture, titled "The Gathering: Of Time, of Land, of Many Hands," that is now a symbolic gateway to downtown Spencer.

The starting point for the ParkArt project was Spencer's sense of "place" - the physical qualities that distinguish the area, and the juxtaposition of human and natural environments. From a series of brainstorming workshops in schools and community settings, the artists elicited stories and ideas from community members about what they felt best conveyed the past, present, and future of the Spencer area.

Their input resulted in a large-scale mosaic sculpture illustrating the theme, "Fostering a Love of Community: Today and Tomorrow, Using Yesterday's Experiences." The undulating sculpture wall reflects the shape of the nearby Little Sioux River. Each face depicts the story of Spencer: the agricultural history of the land, recreational and leisure pursuits, and everyday life. The endpieces use Native American, art deco, folk art, and quilt designs to reference cultural traditions of the region, and two adjacent pillars contrast introduced and native flora.

Installed in East Leach Park, the work is now the centerpiece of a community plaza that attracts visitors from across Spencer. The site marks the point where built and natural environments meet. As such, it symbolizes the crossroads of history and human endeavor that defines a vision of "community."

Smoot-Cain and Pitman Weber commented on their residency and the residency concept in general, remarking, "…the starting point: a reflective inquiry, looking out and looking in, identifying existing strengths, engaging all parts of the community in an open dialog, inviting each to tell their own story. The goal is always to expand from the 'smaller' agenda of individual concerns to family and group heritage, to shared vision and responsibility in and for the community…."

MILLENNIUM ARTIST BIOS

Nina Smoot-Cain is a painter, mosaic artist, installation artist, writer, curator, and project director who has realized public commissions from the Bethel New Life Center for Performing Arts, Chicago Neighborhood Institute, Chicago Percent for Art Program, and Chicago Public Art Group.

John Pitman Weber is a muralist, mosaic artist, printmaker, writer, and educator whose work is featured in the collections of the Valparaiso University, New York City College, Harvard University, and Lutheran School of Theology in Chicago. He is also Chair of the art department at Elmhurst College.