(above: Artist Brad Spencer discusses the West Columbus Project; below : a sample of the artists work on display in Charlotte.)
West Columbus High School has been awarded the prestigious SPARC (School/Public Art Collaboration Projects (SPARC) grant, awarded by the North Carolina Arts Council. It is the only high school in North Carolina to receive the award. The final result of the grant will be a permanent public art installation on the campus of West Columbus.
The grant process is an interesting and multifaceted one. The school created the SPARC Steering committee, made up of community members as well as school faculty, and members of the local arts council, community college, and students. The members met and discussed the overall project, and designated members of the artists selection team. The artist selection team, composed of Thomas Nance, Special Assistant to the Superintendent, Mark Brown, Principal, Ron Cole, Professor of Art at Southeastern Community College, Sally Mann, Executive Director of the Columbus County Arts Council, Kelly Jones Arts Education Coordinator, Larry Hewett, Art Instructor, Carlton Campbell, Teacher, Michael Powell, Teacher and Erik Sellars and Cheyenne Peacock, students at West Columbus, viewed portfolios of ten artists along with Linda Bamford and Jeffrey York of the NC Arts Council. From the ten artists, three finalists were chosen. These three consisted of a sculptor, who works in the medium of metal, a muralist who created the official mural for Columbine High School’s Renovation, and a sculptor who works in brick. All three artists are from North Carolina, and are world-class artists in their own right. Each one of the artists spent a class period talking to art students at West Columbus. The Artist Selection Team came back together and met with each of the three finalists, and made their final selection. The one chosen was Brad Spencer, brick artist from Reidsville, North Carolina. Erik Sellars, an art student on the selection committee explains some of the reasons: “I feel that with any public art, it is best accepted and enjoyed when the art is understood by the community, but has a sense of originality and creativity. Brick is a medium of common knowledge in our community. Everyone has seen it and everyone is familiar with it. Brick sculpture uses a common subject, but puts an exciting twist on it and leaves the viewer thinking "I didn't know you could do that!" Brad Spencer intrigues people with his artwork and I feel that people will like his art not only because it is art but also because they can understand the materials and the process that went into making it.”
This first step of the grant process took about 2 months. The next step in the process is to have Mr. Spencer come into the classroom and work with the students, which will occur early next year. The students will help create the design and the plan will also involve students working on the finished product. Mr. Spencer will spend 10 total classroom days at West Columbus, and the installation of the final piece will occur sometime in April or May. Kelly Jones, Arts Education Coordinator for Columbus County Schools, is excited about the project. “We feel this project will be something the entire county, an indeed the state, can be proud of. We are also very grateful to Jeffrey York and Linda Bamford of the North Carolina Arts Council for giving us this opportunity.” West Columbus Art Instructor Larry Hewett is also very excited about the project: “My students and I are very excited about the opportunity of helping design and work on this tailor-made sculpture for our school. We are looking forward to a wonderful experience with Brad Spencer in our classroom. What an awesome chance for us to work with an artist of his caliber and to leave a piece of artwork behind to be enjoyed long after we are all gone!”
