On Friday, April 12, 2024 West Windsor Arts unveiled their Public Art 101 installation. Plexiglass panels painted by participants of the workshop led by Fiona Clark now adorn the walkway into the front of the art center building. As the rain tapered off and the sun broke through the clouds, artist Bill Plank shared, “Guests were greeted by a colorful entrance of vivid color (with the panels from Public Art 101), along with a beautiful rainbow once the rain cleared.”
Panels installed along the railing at West Windsor Arts
The workshop, Public Art 101 by Artist in Residence Fiona Clark, was held in February 2024 and began with an info session on the ins and outs of creating public art: working with organizations, limitations that the artist may be given and possible parameters for the finished piece. Fiona has painted everything from rain cans to sides of buildings and shared her knowledge and experiences with the group.
The second half of the workshop was about creating an installation. Participants painted plexiglass panels to line the walkways on the front of the arts center building. Under the guidance of Clark, participants created designs that expanded her theme of “Blooms,” which she explores within her own work. The participants had many obstacles to overcome just as one would in any public art installation: imperfections in materials including scratches and paint splatters on the panels from use, color palette limitation, and not knowing exactly how the panels would be hung.
Fiona Clark’s panel in the installation
Fiona Clark’s personal style helped to influence the colorful and uplifting nature of the installation. Clark states, “I specialize in bright, bold, colorful abstracts that spark joy. I do this through paintings, ceramics or public art. I have an interest in how art can combat the epidemic of loneliness, depression and isolation, whether that is through work in people’s personal collections or out in the wild in public spaces.”
The panels used were up-cycled from the acrylic shields West Windsor Arts used during COVID 19 to protect children and adult participants in their classes and programs. The original panels were cut to size for the railing by Jean Irizarry, Assistant Manager, Costello’s Ace Hardware of Princeton. Holes were then drilled in the plexiglass for installation by local sculptor Bruce Lindsay. The willingness of Costello’s Ace Hardware and Bruce Lindsay to work with WWA on this was exceptional and invaluable in being able to complete the project. By up-cycling these shields, participants of the workshop were able to turn them into beautiful, eye-catching, colorful panels.
Contributing Artists for Public Art 101 installation: Nikita Choksi, Fiona Clark, Brandie Dickens, Rashmi George, Janice Gossman, Lily Huber, Audrey Jakab, Lal, Ellen Lichtig, Sonia Sarkar, Rooma Sehar, and Jennifer Wright.
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Some of the artist next to their panels
Top row: Brandie Dickens, Rashmi George, Janice Gossman
Second row: Audrey Jakab, Rooma Sehar, Sonia Sarkar
