Arts & Entertainment
In the Know:
Where to View
Take a ride along 12th Street to
view the three public art pieces
that are a part of the Art & Industry
project:
Erie artist Tom
Ferraro helps hang
painted fabric
panels that together
made a 30-footby-30 foot mural on
the east side of the
Erie Playhouse’s
workshop building
in June. CHRISTO-
“Setting the Stage for Erie’s Future”
Erie Playhouse Rehearsal Hall/
former Coyne Laundry Building at
1158 E. 12th St.
Installed: June 2016
This 30-square-foot mural looks
to Erie’s history to explore the
connection of art, industry and our
quality of life. In it, two exuberant
swing dancers boogie on a stage
framed by cogwheels and a red
velvet curtain. They’re backlit by
a twinkling Erie cityscape, featuring long-foregone smokestacks
alongside today’s modern Bayfront
developments.
The mural is painted on 40 sheets
of polytab fabric, a parachute-like
material pioneered by Philadelphia’s esteemed Mural Arts
Program.
PHER MILLETTE/ERIE
TIMES-NEWS
Chris Cesnick, fabricator with Gene Davis Sales and Services, installs a sculpture called
“Fruits of Labor” at the corner of East 13th and Holland streets. The community art project
was created by artists Ron Bayuzick, Ed Grout, Tom Ferraro and the students at Erie County
Technical School. JACK HANRAHAN/ERIE TIMES-NEWS
action. And action is happening. Change is
happening. Progression is happening here.”
Erie is no stranger to big-picture challenges like economic development, education
or neighborhood revitalization. But when an
artist comes to the table, Brown Sissem said,
it inspires everyone to open up and look at
familiar topics in new ways.
“Artists are the best people to put in the
middle of these conversations because they
think outside the box,” she said. “They see
things that others don’t see. They put a
creative spin on this. And that’s really important to what Erie is becoming as a community,
as well — creativity is a skill set needed by
employers regardless of the job that you’re
in.”
The Art & Industry Project is funded by Erie
Arts & Culture, a National Endowment for the
Arts Artworks Grant, the Pennsylvania Council on the Arts, and the United Way of Erie
County. For more information and a full list of
project partners, visit www.erieartsandculture.org/artandindustry. LEL
34 | L A K E E R I E L I F E S T Y L E / / w w w . l a k e e r i e l i f e s t y l e . c o m
“Fruits of Labor”
East 13th and Holland streets
(green space across from Lovell
Place)
Installed: October 2016
A massive metal sculpture — a
10-by-20 foot horse hauling the
weight of an immense metal globe
— celebrates the role of labor in
Erie’s industrial story. As the city
moves into the future and becomes
globally relevant in new ways,
labor remains steady, even through
change. Fittingly, the look of “Fruits
of Labor” is designed to change
over time as the metal patinas in
response to the elements.
Coming soon: Mural and metals
installation
West 12th and Greengarden streets
(old rail remnant)
Design and details are still in the
works at press time, but a third
installation is underway for early
2017 at the western gateway to
12th Street.