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Graffiti to Art – Is Newport Ready for a Major Work of Public Art?
A bit off the beaten track for most Newporters, Hunter Park is on the Point just north of the Van Zandt Bridge. Look to your right as you cross the bridge towards the water. The park is a bright green saucer shape with a baseball field next to the bridge and tennis courts at the other end. If you have spent much time “down in the park” over the past few years you are aware of the constant battle the city faces in an effort to paint over graffiti that accumulates on the wall supporting the bridge. The graffiti is ugly; the “patch up” paint job to cover it is not attractive. Perhaps you have noticed similar examples elsewhere in the city.
In the fall of 2010, after much discussion, Newport’s Clean City Program announced the formation of a collaborative work team, “Project Mural,” to address the problem of graffiti tagging on the wall in Hunter Park. Supporting this effort are the Women’s Resource Center and their Newport COVE (Communities Overcoming Violence) program; the Arts & Cultural Alliance of Newport County; the Old Colony and Newport Railway; the Alliance for a Livable Newport; the Metropolitan Regional Career Center (MET) school; and the Point Association. Ben Ellcome, an arts consultant for MET school, is directing Project Mural. Ellcome has an extensive arts background working with teens and artists in creating public art.
Ben looks forward to the opportunity to produce a significant piece of community art – 3,000 square feet – that will “bring voices to the table that haven’t been heard before.” This will be the largest piece of public art in Newport. With input from diverse Newport communities, design for the mural is ongoing. Once the design has been approved, the mural painting will commence with interested community members given an opportunity to take part in the work. The Hunter Park mural is the first of what could be more opportunities for neighborhood murals in the city.
What is your opinion about public artwork in Newport?” Your comments are welcome via email to
Please use the word “Mural” as the subject in your message.
A Turn to 10 video (Oct. 25, 2010) about the project can be accessed through this link:
Photo courtesy of John Hirschboeck
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