While most of us were scurrying around with holiday errands and festivities, artists participating in a public art program called IN FLUX were readying a diverse assortment of works you'll soon be able to enjoy in several Valley cities. Think of it as a public art-a-palooza -- with support from both public art entities and private enterprise.
IN FLUX was launched by Scottsdale Public Art in 2010 as a way to infuse vacant storefronts with temporary installations of local art. The first IN FLUX project launched at 5th & Wine in Scottsdale on October 12, 2010, with the debut of Melissa Martinez's towering take on flower power dubbed Pollination.
See also: Western Spirit: Scottsdale's Museum of the West to Open in January 2015
Installations by Ryan Peter Miller, Tara Logsdon, and Pete Goldlust were announced during the first IN FLUX event, and attendees were invited to participate in a community vote for the fifth installation. They selected Erin Sotak's The Mythology of Cleo. Since then, the program has expanded beyond Scottsdale's borders.
Works going up now are part of IN FLUX Cycle 5, which began like all the others -- with an August call to artists. Artists are selected in September, and the period between October and February involves developing proposals and writing contracts as well as artwork fabrication and installation.
The IN FLUX Cycle 5 call to artists noted that up to 20 projects would be funded in seven cities, with variable budgets between $3,500 and $7,000. All Arizona artists "including individuals/collectives/groups/teams," except those commissioned during the previous cycle, were eligible to apply by the September 15, 2014 deadline.
IN FLUX Cycle 5 includes works by 16 artists (including one team of two) exhibited in seven cities, and a few of them have already been installed. Kristin Bauer's Seen is located at Fifth Street and Mill Avenue in Tempe, and two window fronts at the Brickyard (home to the ASU Art Museum's Ceramics Research Center) house work by Rachel Bowditch, who will don an installation-related dress she created during a March Emerge event in Tempe. Artist Nancy McIntosh and the team of Hugo Medina and Kira Olsen will also have works in Tempe.
Some works in the current cycle are funded and managed by city public art programs, but others are funded and/or managed by other entities. There are 11 "partners" funding at least one of this cycle's 15 installations, according to Kirstin Van Cleef, outreach and temporary projects manager for Scottsdale Public Art.
IN FLUX Cycle 5 partners include City of Chandler Public Art; City of Glendale Public Art; City of Phoenix Office of Arts and Culture; City of Tempe Public Art; De Rito Partners; Emerge ASU; Mesa Arts Center; NEDCO (Neighborhood Economic Development Corporation) and Downtown Mesa Association; Scottsdale Public Art; Town of Gilbert Arts, Culture, and Tourism Board; and Whitestone REIT.
Works by Jake Early recently installed at more than a dozen Mesa locations are funded and managed by NEDCO and Downtown Mesa Association. During Mesa's Third Friday event in December, folks got to watch the works going in from viewing areas located at two of the sites: Queen's Pizzeria & Cafe and Lulubell Toy Bodega.
IN FLUX works by Early are also installed at OneOhOne Gallery, 12 West Main, Asylum Records, Desert Eagle Brewing Company, History by George, Justice Trax, Le Studio, LoFi Coffee, Milano Music Center, Nebula Vaping Lounge, and Pearce Zeb Companies. They're all located along West Main Street, where you'll also find a nifty assortment of sculptures. Lauren Strohacker's work will be installed at Mesa Arts Center.
Works by Chelsea Rae Bighorn, John Tuomisto Bell, Sheetal Shaw, and Kaori Takamura will be installed in Scottsdale. Artists Pete Goldlust and Donald Vance will have works in Chandler. You'll be able to see Ann Morton's work in Gilbert, Mary Neubauer's work in Glendale and Eric Boos' work in Phoenix.
Locations for IN FLUX Cycle 5 works include The Pavilions at Talking Stick, Market Street at DC Ranch, and the intersection of Main Street and Marshall Way in Scottsdale; Tempe Marketplace and Fiesta Plaza in Tempe; Gallery Westgate at Westgate City Center in Glendale; Chandler Fashion Center and Vision Gallery in Chandler; and Postino East in Gilbert. Details for the Phoenix installation aren't yet available.
Cycle 5 installations will stay up for varying lengths of time through October of 2015. Related events are typically held during April and May, so watch the IN FLUX website for specifics if you're keen on joining the festivities. The website also details prior IN FLUX cycles, including artists/installations and events.
