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Wisconsin artist Rob Neilson describes the 10-foot artwork to be displayed at Eastway Park as a monument, similar to the towering structures so often made in honor of famous people.
Neilson created this one as a tribute to everyday people. The recently installed design has four brightly colored steel panels, each one bearing an image of a child who Neilson met while in Charlotte doing research for the project.
The sculptor hopes the children's faces will serve as a source of community pride once Eastway Park opens later this year on Eastway Drive.
“All of my work is site-specific,” said Neilson, 40, an associate art professor at Lawrence University in Appleton, Wis. “I wanted to take that a step further. I wanted to make it not just about the location but about the surrounding neighborhood and people who will use this facility.”
The Arts & Science Council Public Art Selection Panel reviewed 50 applications and interviewed three finalists before giving Neilson the commission in 2006. His $72,000-plus project was funded with 2004 park bonds.
Mecklenburg County funds public art projects at parks and county facilities as part of its capital improvement programs.
Neilson, who earned undergraduate and master's degrees at UNC Chapel Hill, created a concept that celebrates the people and place it will serve, said Jean Greer, vice president of Public Art and Creative Individuals for Arts & Science Council, which administers the work of the Public Art Commission.
In a description of the project, Neilson said his concept depicts “unsung heroes who live their lives with sincerity and effort but without the accolades, who nevertheless accomplish great things.”
Neilson took hundreds of photographs of residents during his visits to the area, he said. Later, he put the names of the boys and girls in separate hats then drew two names from each: Jacquelyn Black, Christopher Hernandez, Yarianne Hernandez and Caleb Howard.
Each of the 9-foot portraits of those children is made with a painted steel plate overlaid with cutouts in a contrasting color. The concept is contemporary and shares similarities with the high-contrast, highly sought-after silkscreen portraits by the late Andy Warhol, Greer said.
“This is very much in the vein of what Andy Warhol did,” said Greer, who was on hand for the installation. “He would take photographs of entertainers and celebrities and render them in bold colors.”
Neilson's sculpture sits beside two multi-use athletic fields planned in the 90-acre park's first phase. The stationary piece sits on a circular base and is visible from the parking lot.
The master plan for the park calls for six additional fields along with tennis courts, a recreation center, playgrounds and walking trails, said Blaine Gregory, Mecklenburg County senior park planner. A connector to neighboring Briarwood Park also is planned. Briarwood has more than 33 acres, with two of four planned athletic fields completed. Park and Recreation plans to build future phases as funding is available.
For many residents, the park and its amenities are needed and much-anticipated.
“This area is very anxious to have the park open,” said Carolyn Millen, president of Eastway-Sheffield Neighborhood Association. “They're very excited about it.”
