Last month, the Board of Mayor and Aldermen was informed that the city’s office of cultural arts had received a $6,150 project support grant from the TN Arts Commission. The grant will be matched by an equal amount from the city.
“By the end of 2015, we had enough One Kingsport planning sessions to know that beautification would be a key component,” said Bonnie Macdonald, director of the office of cultural arts.
Downtown Kingsport already has a number of murals, including the history mural on the WKPT building, one on the Signature Properties building, and others at the Kingsport Child Development Center and beside Pal’s. Murals are also located at the Kingsport Aquatic Center, the Riverview Splash Pad and Warranty One on Fort Henry Drive.
Macdonald said the grant money would be used to bring a consultant into town who would help Kingsport create more opportunities for murals, get more people involved in creating murals, share ways to do them and help craft some policies on murals for the city.
The consultant Macdonald has in mind is Jon Pounds of Chicago, who recently retired from the Chicago Public Art Group. For more than 45 years, the CPAG has worked to unite artists and communities by educating the public about art and helping to produce public art pieces for the community.
The TN Arts Commission recommended Pounds as a good resource, Macdonald said.
“He’s written several pamphlets and put out information communities across the country have used about engaging youth to work on murals and how to involve the community,” she said.
Pounds will be in Kingsport Aug. 9 through Aug. 11 conducting workshops for local arts educators and artists. On Aug. 11, he will also present a public lecture and the city will hold a reception for him. The next day, Macdonald said, Pounds will meet with city staff and discuss opportunities for murals elsewhere in the city.
“Not only (will educators) learn different techniques and how to incorporate students and the community in the design process. We’ll also be looking at specific locations and design workshops about those locations,” Macdonald said. “I’m really excited about this. We’ve got so much to celebrate. I think it’s going to be wonderful to get art educators and artists in the room together and see what they come up with.”
The grant and matching funds will cover the cost of Pounds’ visit to Kingsport as well as the design of three murals and part of the production cost. The money won’t completely cover the cost of the three murals.
As to where any new murals would be located, Macdonald said several sites have been recommended by a local downtown design committee.
“We’re open to ideas and nothing is set in stone right now,” Macdonald said. “We want to inspire people, we want people to look at something they can question and create conversations, and we don’t set out to offend people or go make people feel bad. We want people to be delighted with what we do.”
