BEAUFORT, S.C. (Jan. 12, 2020) – The Beaufort Cultural Arts District is seeking sponsors for Phase II of its Bench Project, an artistic celebration of the Beaufort area’s history, culture and arts.
The project launched in 2019. In early 2020, six benches, painted by area artists, were installed throughout the Beaufort Cultural Arts District in downtown Beaufort. The benches commemorate the founding of Santa Elena, Reconstruction, and the founding of USCB, among other milestones. (To see photos the benches and learn more about the project, please go here.)
The fee for sponsors is $500; the price of lumber has gone up significantly since 2019, noted Bonnie Hargrove, the chair of the Cultural Arts District Board. The benches are built by Lowcountry Habitat for Humanity.
The deadline to submit an application as sponsor, as well as the proposed bench artwork, is Feb. 12. Sponsors can select their own artist. Sponsors must own the property where the bench is to be located, or must have permission to place the bench there. Sponsors do not have to be located in the Cultural District to apply for a sponsorship.
Linda Silk Sviland, who painted a bench for Habitat for Humanity that can be found in the Henry C. Chambers Waterfront Park, said last year after she completed her project, “I think it’s a wonderful way to make art. Other cities have done beautiful sculptures, but there is no function other than beauty. This is functional art – it’s a terrific way to have the public see art that is useful.”
Information on how to apply can be found here.
2020 sponsors and benches:
Sponsor: Beaufort Digital Corridor
Artists: Jess O’Brien, Aaron Miller, Shawn Hill, Shelley Barratt, Brian Canada
Theme: Plug in
Location: Corner of Carteret and North streets
Sponsor: Beaufort County Black Chamber of Commerce
Artist: Omar Patterson
Theme: Low Country Dreaming
Location: Corner of Bladen and Duke streets
Sponsor: Lowcountry Habitat for Humanity
Artist: Linda Silk Sviland
Theme: Seeking to put God’s love into action
Location: Henry C. Chambers Waterfront Park
Sponsor: National Reconstruction Era National Park
Artist: Ginger Noah Wareham
Theme: United when the impossible suddenly became possible
Location: Corner of Craven and Scott streets
Sponsor: Santa Elena History Center
Artists: Frank Anson, Tom Van Steenbergh, Sandy Dimke, Lynne Darling
Theme: Beaufort’s earliest history and heritage
Location: Courtyard at Bay and Bladen streets
Sponsor: University of South Carolina Beaufort
Artists: Mary Ann Ford and John Rodriguez; master builder Greg Rawls
Theme: Beaufort College – Rich Heritage of Education
Location: Entrance to Center for the Arts
More about the Cultural Arts District and Advisory Board: http://bit.ly/35qWqaP
######
Find us:
facebook.com/CityBeaufortSC
twitter.com/CityBeaufortSC
instagram.com/citybeaufortsc
cityofbeaufort.org