Congratulations to the City of Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio, recipient of an Our Town grant this year from the National Endowment for the Arts. As public art consultant to the city, I worked with city staff and ArtsNow, a local arts and culture nonprofit organization, on a proposal for River in the City, a project will bring new perspectives to the cultural, historical, environmental and physical connections between Cuyahoga Falls’ key assets––its revitalizing downtown, the Cuyahoga River, and its community. This project was a priority recommendation in the City’s recently-completed public art master plan, which I led.
Cuyahoga Falls, a historic industrial city located on the Cuyahoga River forty miles southeast of Cleveland, has had many identities: it has thrived as an industrial hub, evolved into a suburb of Akron, and now is establishing itself as a prominent gateway to Cuyahoga Valley National Park. Throughout the city’s history, the Cuyahoga riverfront has been an essential asset to the city and will serve as the focal point for activating new arts programming and ventures.
Over 18 months River in the City will be rolled out in for phases spearheaded by the City, ArtsNow, two artist (Stacy Lacy and a local Native American artist to be determined), and me.
Discovery: Artists and the community will get to know each other through engaging activities aimed at rediscovering the river as a crucible of Cuyahoga Falls identity.
Activation: This phase will issue an open call to artists and community meters for creative activations that offer fresh interpretations of the river-city relationship
Creation: Lead artists will explore the themes determined in the first two phases to create a permanent artwork.
Evaluation: The final phase will prepare a project impact report to consider how the outcomes can be leverage into further policy and placemaking
As a consultant for River in the City I’m excited to work with Cuyahoga Falls and community stakeholders to establish a public art plan that is engaging, collaborative and enhances the community and environment.
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