Remake Estate is officially open! The launch was a huge success. We had tons of healthy soup and food, the Compass group had set up a huge shaded marque anchored by four cars, we had speakers including Kim and Jonathon from CDOP and Trey and Trev dressed in their MJ finest dancing their lil hearts out to help launch the garden and mural.
We also made front page news of the Post Tribune- which probably helped us get heaps of people down.
Below is the article text:
Gary inspires project by Australian artists
Dilapidated home used for mural, overgrown lot a garden
July 17, 2010 BY JON SEIDEL
GARY – The bright colors pop through the residential block in the 2400 block of Massachusetts Street, drawing eyes toward an image of a tin man, a lion and a scarecrow. Emblazoned in paint across the front of the empty home are the words “Remake Estate.” The characters on the side are drawn not directly from the classic “The Wizard of Oz” but its 1978 reimagining, “The Wiz.” And that scarecrow, of course, is Gary native Michael Jackson, who starred in the movie with Diana Ross.
The artwork, by Gary-based Higher Art Creative Learning Center, was prompted by a pair of Australian artists leading a project that includes a community garden by the house. “It just seemed a natural link that he’d be the scarecrow for the garden,” said Zanny Begg of You Are Here.
Begg and Keg de Souza, who have worked on similar projects in the Australian suburbs, are in town for an artistic residency funded by the Australia Council for the Arts, according to their website. A grand opening where they will discuss their work is planned for 5 tonight.
The Remake Estate name is drawn from an unrealized Fake Estates project by the artist Gordon Matta-Clark, who bought up unusable slivers of land in New York City. He planned to use them as sites of “anarchitectural interventions” but died before he had the chance. Visitors to tonight’s grand opening will have a chance to view the mural painted on the house at 2404 Massachusetts.
Begg said the property was donated by the nearby St. John Baptist Church. County records show the empty lot where Begg and de Souza have planted their garden is owned by the church, but the house is owned by Bin Yun Liu of Chicago, who owes delinquent taxes. The garden, Begg said, will remain after the artists leave town. Filled with peppers, tomatoes, herbs and melons, Begg said it is meant for anyone who wants to pick food from it. “If you take something, just make sure you water them,” Begg said.
Begg and de Souza have been working with members of the Central District Organizing Project, a community activist group. While the garden is a short stroll away from the group’s headquarters, member Jonathan Wilson said CDOP shouldn’t necessarily be the only group caring for it. “We want to try to make it so the whole community does,” Wilson said.
Begg and de Souza will also premiere a “thumbnail sketch” of a film they’ve been preparing that weaves interviews with Gary residents between clips from “The Wiz.” Begg said many themes in the movie, such as oppression and broken dreams, can be applied to the problems faced by Gary residents. Even the characters relate to the city, Begg said. The tin man represents the steel mills, while the lion symbolizes courage.
Begg said she and de Souza had a chance to interview Mayor Rudy Clay for their film. “He was really generous with his time,” Begg said. However, she said there will be a nod toward a recent comment by the mayor at tonight’s event. When he announced plans to build a tribute to Jackson’s family last month, Clay said people in Gary sometimes throw “poison in the soup,” and he asked them not to derail the project. Begg said soup will be served tonight, despite the heat. She promised it will be healthy and “unpoisoned.”
July 19, 2010 at 5:27 am |
Yay! You guys are awesome. Congrats x x x