Inner Loop - CBD, Downtown, East Bank, Germantown, Gulch, Rutledge

[rookzie]

Rumor of a kudzu burger shop and vine garden there. -==-

[CenterHill]

Speaking of Gulch Crossings, has anything been done to the ugly wall facing the train tracks? 

The ivy (or VA creeper or trumpet vine or whatever it is) is about 6 ft up the wall now.    In time it will be Wrigley Field down there.  

[Nathan_in_DC]

I don't mind Stix, Ghost Ballet, or any of the other installations popping up alongside projects around town but I do wish we had more of a classical bent when it comes to the 1% public art program. I'm not saying one style is better than another but I wonder about the staying power of each. Are these works going to remain attractive after a few decades, even centuries? Or will they be viewed as a artifact of fleeting trends in style? Will they even still be around by then?

There are many cities around the world who have buildings, sculptures, and other works that are hundreds, if not thousands of years old, but are so timeless in character that they become attractions themselves. I could see something like Musica sticking around for a while. The Parthenon has already, in spite of being a replica. These, not so much.

I think the "Athens of the South" could aspire to more with the money being spent.

I couldn't agree more. Look at much of the public art installed in the 1980s to early 1990s...gaudy, loud, and kitschy things that many cities are just stuck with now. No one seems to complain about classically styled sculpture or monuments, though (I'd say Musica is toeing the line of classically styled sculpture, with a modern bent). They just last.

Edited September 30, 2015 by Nathan_in_DC
Many thanks to Nashvillain for keeping me from looking like a moron by using the wrong words

[bhibbs]

hell, Stix is just our very on redneck Stonehenge, she will be there for hundreds of years to come boys!

[think365]

Corner of Arthur and Garfield.

Edited September 30, 2015 by think365

[chris holman]

I'm wondering if the wood is covered with a all weather  coat so it art will last in the elements of the Sun and hot and cold temperature , I work at Gibson and deal with wood all the time and wood flex if wet and gets smaller when dry , 

[MidTenn1]

Okay... let's talk about the lighting for this "art", shall we?  Does anyone here know what/how the lights will be done (from bottom-up, LEDs along the poles, etc.).  

[BnaBreaker]

Can we stop using quotation marks around the word art everytime it is used?  We get it.  It isnt a Michaelangelo and it isnt your cup of tea.  That doesnt mean its not art.

Edited September 30, 2015 by BnaBreaker

[MidTenn1]

Little known fact about yours truly....before I got my Engineering degree, I got an art degree. I was actually majoring in draft deferment (something only DnD, MH, Rz and maybe Smeag might understand as to what that means). I have studied art and architecture (after a brief trip to architecture school) and have a different perspective on what is going on here. I am not a snob about it and have respect for all opinions concerning art (unlike an art professor I once had who said, "It's all a matter of taste, some have it and some don't"). We all see it different ways and some of the most successful artwork does create a variety of emotions and discussion in my opinion. You won't drive by it an ignore it, as you might if it were a figurative statue or fountain.

Styx would probably not be my first choice for that location. It might have been more appropriate on the Metro Courthouse campus, I think. But it is intriguing and will draw attention and controversy to it.

And as to the construction method, at some point, as with Ghost Ballet on the east bank, Musica and Athena Parthenos, the art ceases to be a hands-on sculpture and becomes an engineering project. Structural plans are developed and an appropriate foundry or construction company is charged with the actual full scale installation with close supervision by the artist. Which is also the same way the Lincoln Memorial, Statute of Liberty and Mount Rushmore were built. So the method of installation does not lessen or cheapen the artistic value of the project at all.

You know I like to see some risks taken in art and architecture. I love it when the creative class in this town metaphorically and literally steps out of the glass box and does something to make us turn our heads and notice. It doesn't happen often enough.

[Nathan_in_DC]

Can we stop using quotation marks around the word art everytime it is used?  We get it.  Its isnt a Michaelangelo and it isnt your cup of tea.  That doesnt mean its not art.

I'm just going to be doing air quotes at my desk every time I read it then. Try stopping me from doing that! Muwahahah!

[PillowTalk4]

I like the Stix art/light sculpture.  Doesn't bother me at all.  I do wish it had a water element to it.

Speaking of water, I hope that Nashville will consider fountains in future projects.  Fountains can be simple structures but have a dramatic impact.  I live near a neighborhood that has at its entrance what appears to be about a 10-15 foot high 3 tiered stone wall that is approx. 30 feet across in a curve that has water that flows over the top and splashes down on each tier as it goes into the lowest level and then recycles.  The water fall is very full and powerful.  This is not a trickling water feature.  It sounds like a water fall you'd hear in mountains.  I figure if a suburban neighborhood in Bowie, MD can install something like that at an entrance, then surely a city should be able to incorporate something of similar scale or larger with an art sculpture on top

[MidTenn1]

A friend of mine recently got a tour of Gulch Crossings led by an ESA representative who told her the building shape is an homage to the 'railroad boxcar'.

That probably explains the decision regarding its height.

[bigeasy]

"art"

 

 

But seriously, I think the thing that bugs me the most about this is the cost. Design aside, how does something like this cost $750K? Maybe I highly underestimate the cost of the utility poles.  I am sure when everything is all done it will cost over a million dollars. Did they ever release what the other options were? I still find it crazy that this was chosen as the winner, which would imply it was the best one. That being said, I look forward to seeing it finished. It will certainly have an impact due to the size. I hope it is something that won't age quickly. I am sure it will have to be repainted again, but hopefully it is something that doesn't need lots of upkeep. 

Edited September 30, 2015 by bigeasy

[titanhog]

. I am sure it will have to be repainted again, but hopefully it is something that doesn't need lots of upkeep. 

How would you repaint these things?  You would have to use a cherry-picker, right?

[bhibbs]

How would you repaint these things?  You would have to use a cherry-picker, right?

[smeagolsfree]

I think it would have been cheaper to cut 30, 70' lodge pole pines and transport them to Nashville and let one of the high school art classes paint them. I did like the project at first but after seeing them, well.... other than the height, I am very deeply UNDERWHELMED!

 

I will say too that the paint is probably going to fade. Looks really cheaply done.  As a matter of fact, I would have been glad to have done for a half a million.

[titanhog]

I think it would have been cheaper to cut 30, 70' lodge pole pines and transport them to Nashville and let one of the high school art classes paint them. I did like the project at first but after seeing them, well.... other than the height, I am very deeply UNDERWHELMED!

 

I will say too that the paint is probably going to fade. Looks really cheaply done.  As a matter of fact, I would have been glad to have done for a half a million.

I would have done it for a $¼ Mil.

[Guest]

the most expensive pixie sticks in the world... another boondoggle 

[chris holman]

Is it me or does the Renaissance Hotel looks like it's being repainted

 

It's very hard to tell in this picture but in the front of the building in the far right the stripes look like they're brighter can anybody confirm this

[Vrtigo]

Is it me or does the Renaissance Hotel looks like it's being repainted

 

It's very hard to tell in this picture but in the front of the building in the far right the stripes look like they're brighter can anybody confirm this

They are indeed brighter, but I have no idea whether they are actually repainting or if there is another explanation. 

[Paramount747]

They are not doing anything to the Ren. I was there on Saturday.

[RonCamp]

They are indeed brighter, but I have no idea whether they are actually repainting or if there is another explanation. 

Just looked out my window.  Does indeed appear they are painting it, though I'll have to get closer to make sure.

[BnaBreaker]

I think it would have been cheaper to cut 30, 70' lodge pole pines and transport them to Nashville and let one of the high school art classes paint them. I did like the project at first but after seeing them, well.... other than the height, I am very deeply UNDERWHELMED!

 

I will say too that the paint is probably going to fade. Looks really cheaply done.  As a matter of fact, I would have been glad to have done for a half a million.

 

I have to say that although I still think this will be impressive, at least from afar, when completed, I too am growing less and less impressed with this project by the day.  I quite like the overall concept, but like you, I just feel like it is being really half-assed.  For some reason (perhaps given the high price,) I thought these would be made of some sort of durable composite material and lit from within.  I really didn't expect these to literally be just a bunch of untreated wooden poles.  I mean, nothing wrong with wood, but in this case it just looks so unrefined, like they just picked them up from the lumber mill, slapped a coat of paint on them that they bought from Lowe's, and shoved them into the ground.  I mean, did they think this through at all?  They're going to have to repaint this thing every other year, not to mention the weathering and warping that might occur!

Also, for the record, I made that quotation remark mostly in jest, just so everyone is aware.  I don't actually care if you call it "art."   I was just making a point that something qualifying as art (or not) does not depend on whether one likes it (or not.)

Edited September 30, 2015 by BnaBreaker

[Neigeville2]

 

I have to say that although I still think this will be impressive, at least from afar, when completed, I too am growing less and less impressed with this project by the day.  I quite like the overall concept, but like you, I just feel like it is being really half-assed.  For some reason (perhaps given the high price,) I thought these would be made of some sort of durable composite material and lit from within.  I really didn't expect these to literally be just a bunch of untreated wooden poles.  I mean, nothing wrong with wood, but in this case it just looks so unrefined, like they just picked them up from the lumber mill, slapped a coat of paint on them that they bought from Lowe's, and shoved them into the ground.  I mean, did they think this through at all?  They're going to have to repaint this thing every other year, not to mention the weathering and warping that might occur!

Also, for the record, I made that quotation remark mostly in jest, just so everyone is aware.  I don't actually care if you call it "art."   I was just making a point that something qualifying as art (or not) does not depend on whether one likes it (or not.)

If they have to paint them every year that'll create a chance to vary the look, much like when musica is fitted with different oversized clothes.  And since it is intended to evoke native american art I don't see it as a problem that the materials look natural and "unrefined".  

A water feature would have been nice, but was ruled out from the start as there is no water line to the roundabout and it was felt it would be prohibitive.  I can't find a link to the other proposals but as I recall they were all really embarrassing crap.  One was a tall pile of plastic letters spelling out some kind of sappy love-and-peace message, really awful.  The days of the heroic bronze are behind us, unfortunately.

My preference would have been for something like the projection of James Franco's head in Oz: The Great and Powerful, but people are too timid when it comes to things like this.  If it could be programmed to follow particular cars as they go about the roundie-and shout at them through speakers-it would be perfect.

 

Edited October 1, 2015 by Neigeville2

[nashvillwill]

If they have to paint them every year that'll create a chance to vary the look, much like when musica is fitted with different oversized clothes.  And since it is intended to evoke native american art I don't see it as a problem that the materials look natural and "unrefined".  

A water feature would have been nice, but was ruled out from the start as there is no water line to the roundabout and it was felt it would be prohibitive.  I can't find a link to the other proposals but as I recall they were all really embarrassing crap.  One was a tall pile of plastic letters spelling out some kind of sappy love-and-peace message, really awful.  The days of the heroic bronze are behind us, unfortunately.

My preference would have been for something like the projection of James Franco's head in Oz: The Great and Powerful, but people are too timid when it comes to things like this.  If it could be programmed to follow particular cars as they go about the roundie-and shout at them through speakers-it would be perfect.

I seriously just laughed my a$$ off! Now that's what I call art right there. Why did you not propose this idea before Stix was decided upon?