Students who walk through the atrium of the Design Building will see people drawing on a wall. They are drawing on the blackboard art wall put up by the College of Art and Design. Art can be found in unlikely areas around Baton Rouge this semester because of projects like the art wall and SurReal Estate, a project that promotes art in temporary or derelict spaces. The art wall in the Design Building was added this summer when the gallery in the atrium closed, and people have been writing and drawing on it since. “The blackboard wall in the atrium of the Design Building is the College of Art and Design’s analog chat room,” David Cronrath, dean of the College of Art and Design, said in an e-mail to The Daily Reveille. “When you have creative students like in our college, it is our job to give them as many ways as possible to express their talents and ideas.” Many students and professors stop by the blackboard between classes or on breaks to draw or write on the wall or to observe others’ contributions made to it. “It’s cool to have something that’s dynamic and changes day to day on campus,” said Scott Beckstrom, geography senior. “I like to come here and think about the people who made the contributions to the wall — what they were thinking.” The blackboard wall changes every day and is cleaned every Thursday to allow for new contributions, which range from inspirational quotes and stick figures to detailed drawings. “People can comment on each other’s comments — it’s sort of like Facebook in chalk,” said Rod Parker, interim director of the School of Art. Culture Candy, a local nonprofit organization which promotes the growth of local artists, sponsors the The SurReal Estate project that uses spaces like construction sites to promote local artists. “[SurReal Estate] has a personal community value,” said Erin Rolfs, executive director of Culture Candy. “It shows people what it’s like to live with art on a daily basis — it’s pleasing, expressive and relatable.” SurReal Estate is working with Marvin “Buddy” Ragland of Coleman Partners Architects on the renovation of the King Hotel downtown. The project began with an 8-by-12-foot plywood panel on the construction fence around the building, which artist and University graduate Todd Hines began covering with a mural. “[The SurReal Estate project] makes people pay attention to something they normally wouldn’t pay attention to,” Hines said. “It allows you to take something people would normally ignore and turn it into something that is unique and interesting.” Previous SurReal Estate Projects include the walkway outside the One Eleven Apartments, an interactive installation created by University graduate students, and Within the Hemline, an installation featuring art created from household items.”We like to support the arts, and this is a great way to do it,” Ragland said. Rolfs said SurReal Estate is based on a similar project in Houston which manipulates abandoned houses into art. SurReal Estate began its first project in February 2008 with a mural inside the construction walkway set up around the Shaw Center for the Arts when the One Eleven Apartments were being constructed.—-Contact Catie Vogels at [email protected]
Art found in unlikely areas around Baton Rouge
December 6, 2009