Next, Lewisville City Council will have to approve a contract but got insight on the Arts Advisory Board’s selection process during a April 1 work session.
The background
The total budget was $80,000 for fiscal year 2023-24, and the Friends of the Library donated $5,000 to bring the total to $85,000. The artist would get $75,000, and the rest would be contingency money, according to a presentation provided during the work session.
Art Center Manager Denise Helbing said 241 artist applied for the project, and three finalists were chosen:
- Peter Hite of Houston, Texas
- Area C Projects: Erik Carlson and Erica Carpenter of Providence, Rhode Island
- Michele Gutlove of Natick, Massachusetts
Gutlove was chosen for her proposal that was inspired by Lewisville Lake, and the native prairies and flora of the region, according to city documents. Her glass art work will wrap around a column and go up to the second story of the library. There will be suspended pieces of glass that will represent water flowing off the column, Helbing said. Gutlove will also have a satellite installation on the second level of the library, but details are still being worked out, Helbing said.
According to information provided to council, Gutlove has done more than 50 commissioned art installations in the United States, Canada, Finland and Iceland.
Once approved by council, Helbing said the project should be finished in six to nine months.
Quote of note
“That will make that entry really, really pop,” Mayor TJ Gilmore said. “I'm very excited to see it.”
