Last year’s reveal of the East Market Street—Nulu Streetscape project designed by CARMAN was an important step in the evolution of Nulu as a neighborhood and a bellwether of the design priorities there. Tomorrow, the neighborhood will strengthen its placemaking bona fides by announcing Nulu Art 16, the first public art installation for the neighborhood.
Art 16 is a collaboration among the Nulu Business Association, Louisville Commission on Public Art (COPA), and the Louisville Downtown Partnership. It will be helmed by Jennifer McGregor, independent consultant and director of arts & senior curator at Wave Hill, a public garden in the Bronx. McGregor recently completed a similar project for the Rose Fitzgerald Kennedy Greenway in Boston and is currently developing a public art plan for Laramie, WY.
In her Boston vision, McGregor conceived of “Platforms” and “Magnets” as foundations for public interaction with the greenway. Platform projects “take advantage of existing park conditions and are intended to support diverse artworks over time.” They’re successive, short-term installations.
Magnet projects “bring local, national, and international attention, drawing residents, visitors, and public art pilgrims alike. Magnets are impressive in scale, interactivity, and artistic excellence.” These projects are harder to plan; they’re long-term and require institutional support.
These “Platforms” and “Magnets” dovetail with the Louisville Public Art Master Plan, which
created COPA—one of the project’s partners—and outlines the application process for artists proposing temporary or permanent works. How coincidental this is, and closely these visions align or diverge, will be revealed tomorrow, Friday, January 30, at 5:00p.m. at 642 East Market Street.
