With a grant and city funding, Watkinsville puts its commitment to the arts on display

I love living in Watkinsville, and want the Artland of Georgia to fully blossom. But we need to put the next wave of public art in some less obvious places on the peripheries and on the borders of the municipalities especially on the westside coming off the bypass. We need tangible creations that we all can be proud of by artists of local and international acclaim who will place their works of art on display for future generations to come. About the only memorable landmark on that industrial side of to wn would be Memory Station, so let's commission a railroad themed sculpture sometime soon. We need folk art, we need to perhaps emulate some of what Farmington has done with their outdoor art, and maybe take a page from Winterville with its steel structure arch over its city park. Imagine a Beverly Babb work welcoming visitors to Watkinsville with open hands or arms straddling the entrance of our city from Athens, Madison, or even Oglethorpe or Greene counties. We can even incorporate art to help make our city safer, such as the obvious needs for protection where 15 and 441 come together such as the gap in front of Jittery Joe's near the pocket Patriot Park or the sharp elevated sidewalk in front of Ashford Methodist Church. Encourage the steel flowers of the industrial park, but put art where it provokes a reaction, becomes a landmark, and is something we all can participate in choosing and promoting. There are dozens of amazing artists and not just sculptors right here in Watkinsville who would love to be asked for an idea or a location or a description or a commission. Keep the options open Watkinsville and welcome input from more than just a committee.

With a grant and city funding, Watkinsville puts its commitment to the arts on display