Artspace: Ready 2 Shovel
We're seeing a lot of shovels lately, but I doubt that you are likely to ever run across shovels as artistic as the ones that will be used to break ground this Saturday. The highly anticipated Artspace project will get underway with a commencement to mark a new day for art in Buffalo. I mean it wouldn't be an artistic groundbreaking if the artist didn't create the shovels used to mark the occasion. There are talks about raffling off the works of art, though I think it would be pretty cool if the shovels were saved to adorn the future entrance to the building.
This should be quite the event on Main Street. If you missed the recent groundbreakings at the Burchfield-Penney, or the FLW Boat House you might want to come to the Artspace celebration. Live music, hard-hat tours, refreshments and appearances by Popla-Pavo Puppetry (think Elmwood Festival parade) will make Saturday a date no one will want to miss. The inset image is an artistic shovel titled “Buffalo Artspace Reliquiae” - the artist is Kevin Kegler of Buffalo.
All of the relevant event details can be found below. BR hopes to see many of you there. We can't wait to see the finished product!
There will be art by the shovelful Saturday at a public “construction celebration” marking the beginning of construction of the Artspace Buffalo Lofts at 1219 Main Street.
Buffalo Mayor Byron W. Brown and others will wield colorful shovels bearing designs by ten Buffalo artists. Brown will also be the featured speaker at the two-hour event, which will begin at 1:00 P.M.
Since the project has been under construction for several months, the shoveling will be ceremonial only. There will also be hard-hat tours of the building, refreshments by Globe Harvest, and entertainment by Marimba and Ginger Lovers with Popla-Pavo Puppetry.
The Artspace Buffalo Lofts will create 60 units of affordable “live/work” housing for artists and their families in and behind the historic Buffalo Electric Vehicle Co. factory. Twenty-four units will be housed in the renovated factory, which is also known as the Breitweiser Building, and 36 will be built on vacant land behind the factory. In a live/work project, each dwelling unit contains sufficient extra space for a working studio.
The project will also create ground-floor commercial space for arts-compatible businesses.
that shovel is amazing! someone said there are 9 of them, all by local artists?
It would be neat if those artists would make some artistic hard-hats for the politicians to wear too. Definately a Kodak moment !
The Artspace project is great for artists and great for Buffalo! It adds to the already growing redevelopment of midtown Main Street. Many of the buildings in this area have great bones and more redevelopment will only enhance Buffalo.
As far as the shovels are concerned.....FANTASTIC! I would expect nothing less from the growing number of artists who call Buffalo home.
thumper...
do you know if the shovels will be on permanent display?