The Black community voted no on a controversial sculpture called “E Pluribus Unum” created by New York based artist Fred Wilson. But they can soon share their thoughts on one of five proposed pieces to take its place on the Indianapolis Cultural Trail.
“It’s been an amazing process. This is the kind of thing that gets people talking. People can feel passionate about art and it’s personal connection to them and their neighborhood,” said Ernest Disney-Britton director of grant services for the Arts Council of Indianapolis during a viewing of the new pieces at the Crispus Attucks Museum.
The Greater Indianapolis Progress Committee (GIPC) and the Arts Council put together a Cultural Arts Committee who called on an Art Selection subcommittee to review submissions for African-American art on the trail. Scale models were gathered through an artist request for proposal process launched earlier this year.
“We’ve been very transparent and open. We did five or six public meetings around town on nights and weekends so people could come and give their input. We took that input and that’s how we came up with the requests for proposals,” said businessman Bill Shrewsberry, who is also the co-chair of the Cultural Trail Arts Committee. Dave Lawrence, president and CEO of the Arts Council of Indianapolis also serves as co-chair.
The selection subcommittee is comprised of steering committee members; visual art professionals from galleries, museums, and other visual art institutions in Indianapolis; artists; and community representatives/designees as recommended by the Cultural Arts Committee and partner institutions. People such as Pat Payne, director of multicultural education for IPS; Wilma Moore from the Indiana Historical Society; and Malcolm Mobutu Smith, a professor of fine arts at Indiana University were involved.
Out of 20 submissions, the committee chose five diverse pieces.
“Dan Chair” by Michael Puryear from Shokan, N.Y., highlights the Atlantic slave trade and features a style of chairs created by a West-African tribe called Dan.
“Talking Wall” by Bernard Williams of Chicago is a collection of iconic people and symbols specific to Indianapolis such a Major Taylor, Madame Walker, and the Indiana Black Regiment formed during the Civil War.
Reginald Adams of Houston has a model called “The Historic Mile.” It is a tall glass mural featuring historic and contemporary Blacks who have made positive contributions to the local African-American community.
Vinnie Bagwell of White Plains, N.Y., has a piece called “The Griot: At the Sacred Place of My Ancestors” and is a large bronze statue featuring a female story teller.
The only local piece comes from William Rasdell and Atsu Kpotufe called “Tribute to Jazz on Indiana Avenue” and contains a large, raised musical note allowing viewers to discover Indianapolis’ rich jazz history.
The public can view the five models at the Crispus Attucks Museum until Nov. 2. From there, they will move to the Indianapolis Artsgarden to be displayed from Nov. 5-18.
All are encouraged to give their opinion on which art piece they believe best represents Blacks and Indianapolis. y visiting Indyarts.org/art-on-the-trail; calling (317) 289-4692; or by completing feedback cards at the various sites where the art will be showcased.
“This is a community project so we hope everyone tries to get to see the new pieces and give their opinion. We certainly don’t want to do something and find out later, we should have considered something else,” said Shrewsberry.
The Cultural Arts Committee will select a piece based on public feedback, then recommended it to the Arts Council of Indianapolis and GIPC for final selection.
At Recorder Press time, it is unclear as to where the piece will be installed on the trail, although it has been suggested to put the piece near Indiana Avenue.
A change of plans
From its inception, the Indianapolis Cultural Trail: A Legacy of Gene & Marilyn Glick was planned as a place for public art. It is an 8-mile urban bike and pedestrian path in downtown Indianapolis that connects neighborhoods, cultural districts and entertainment amenities while serving as the downtown hub for Central Indiana’s greenway system.
The Cultural Trail was made possible by a large public and private collaboration led by the Central Indiana Community Foundation (CICF), the City of Indianapolis and several not-for-profit organizations. Over $2 million in private funding was allocated for new artwork along the trail. Among the works was a piece called “E Pluribus Unum,” proposed by conceptual artist Fred Wilson.
The Indianapolis Recorder Newspaper was among the first to report that the statue, a reproduction and “repurposing” of a former slave whose image is currently found on the Soldiers and Sailors Monument at the center of Monument Circle in downtown Indianapolis, would be reimagined by Wilson and placed along the Indianapolis Cultural Trail near the City-County Building.
Some members of the community opposed Wilson’s piece and demanded that production on “E Pluribus Unum” be stopped. Brian Payne, president and CEO of CICF and other stakeholders in the project hosted forums to allow the public to voice their concerns, most notably in a spirited town hall meeting at the Madame Walker Theatre.
“As it turned out, this proposed art piece caused many people a great sense of anxiety and pain and for that I apologize,” said Payne after the announcement that the piece would be discontinued. “It was our intention in approaching Fred Wilson and other artists of color in doing a project for the cultural trail to engage the best American artist in the country and to be fully inclusive and diverse in our artist selection.”
GIPC’s Race and Cultural Relations Leadership Network committee got involved in the process and brought Payne and disgruntled members of the community, most notably a group called CASI or Citizens Against Slave Image, together to discuss next steps and come to an agreement on a new art piece that better reflected African-Americans.
Local activist Reginald Jones was one of the seven members of CASI and has stayed the course in the new selection process.
“I thought (‘E Pluribus Unum’) was insulting. To me, it represented enslavement and had this man in a subservient position. I didn’t see what the artist saw. He still had no shoes, no shirt and he was still sitting. He had a flag in his hand, but it almost looked like he was fishing,” said Jones. “If we’re going to have something to represent us, certainly we wanted something that had more dignity and respect.”
Jones, who is 73 years old, said he has seen decisions made that affect Blacks the most, but excludes the involvement of Blacks in the process. He held to his principals in order prevent a repetition of history.
Jones said meetings with Payne and others who supported “E Pluribus Unum” were initially very volatile, but eventually, became civil resulting in positive dialogue. He is proud of Blacks standing up for their beliefs; applauds both sides for coming to an agreement; and is especially happy that Payne and others were able to understand the Black perspective.
Payne experienced a similar roller coaster of emotions.
“Initially I was disappointed largely because we really did try to do a lot of community outreach. That was part of Fred’s initial proposal. A lot of people really didn’t really want to engage until it became a controversy,” said Payne. “Over time my emotions changed from disappointment to understanding to agreement.”
It should be noted that not all Blacks opposed the original statue. Jones said there were many Blacks, including many young people, who were in favor of Fred Wilson’s idea. However, had “E Pluribus Unum” been constructed, despite strong opposition, Jones said he would have destroyed the statue and was prepared to face the consequences.
“If you believe it, you should go to the limits for it,” said Jones, who is also passionate about education and unemployment. “Fifty years later, I’ll be gone, but that statue will be here representing (Blacks). By any means necessary, (‘E Pluribus Unum’) was not going to go up.”
Payne said this situation should be viewed as a learning experience for all.
“Be fully engaged in things that you are passionate about, like art; Indianapolis has highly engaged people who have good intentions and want what’s best for the community; and that when there’s a disagreement, people can come together and find common ground,” he said.
“This has marked a new way of putting the public back into the public art discussion. And for Indianapolis, this is also a new paradigm for how decisions are made,” said Toby Miller of GIPC.
In May 2013, the 8 miles of Trail was completed, marking the official grand opening.
“We’re really thrilled that the trail, we believe, delivered on all the promises we made. We’re seeing a ton of people using the trial; national and international publicity that’s good for Indianapolis; new developments near the trail that’s filling up empty lots – so this is also delivering on economic development,” said Payne.
For more information, call (317) 454-8525, email publicart@indyarts.org or visit Indyculturaltrail.org. For more information on the five artists or to view their proposals, visit Indyarts.org/art-on-the-trail.
