Arts In Crisis

 By: Laura Johnston    Friday, November 07, 2014     No comments

In 2010 Nashville suffered from severe flooding.  Ten thousand people were displaced from their homes. Twenty-four people died. As volunteers rushed to help with Hurricane Sandy on the east coast, Tennessee residents felt overlooked. In thirty six hours fourteen to twenty inches of rain created flooding in rivers, homes, and highways. With little outside help, people relied on their own communities. Three hundred thousand hours of local volunteer time was recorded. Journalist and news anchor Anderson Cooper reported he had never seen so many people willing to help.

In response to the crisis the state commissioned six artists to create public artworks that would be both visible and functional within the effected communities. The program was called Waterworks. This program played a vital part in Tennessee's renewal process as artists worked directly with community members, listening and acknowledging their struggles.

Craig Nutt, one of the above mentioned artists, created the Bellevue Bench Mark. His Bellevue bench displays maps of the flood plains in a central park. People enjoyed pointing out where they lived and experienced the floods. Mike Allison's piece, Liquid 615, was created in Antioch where he had seen a trailer floating down the highway during the floods. Liquid 615 consists of horizontally arranged, glass blown teardrops lit by LED lights.

Bellevue Bench Mark: http://www.nashville.gov/Arts-Commission/Public-Art/Find-An-Artwork/Collection/Watermarks/Bellevue-Bench-Mark.aspx

Liquid 615: http://www.nashville.gov/Arts-Commission/Public-Art/Find-An-Artwork/Collection/Watermarks/Liquid-615.aspx

The profound outcome of these projects is reflected in the healing the artists and the community went through. Not only did the artists represent the community's flood experience but also their own. Every artist commissioned had been a victim of the floods as well. It is evident in the artwork that some artists are well equipped to rebuild communities. Often, through trial and error artists create work out of seemingly nothing. These resources are tremendously helpful when trying to rebuild a city out of ashes. Do you believe your community would ban together such as Tennessee's communities did? How would art play a role in rebuilding your community?