TEXARKANA, Texas - A Texas state grant will bring additional public art downtown in the form of LED light sculptures at the Downtown Post Office and Courthouse Square, Hotel Grim and ArtSparK on 4th and Main streets.
The Texas Commission on the Arts has awarded a $27,500 Cultural District Project grant for the second phase of the Texarkana Arts and Historic District's Courthouse Square Connections Project.
Light sculptor and Texas artist Bill FitzGibbons will create the art. Based in San Antonio, FitzGibbons has created work such as the Alamo Lights, Spirit of San Fernando and Kinetic Skyline there, but his public art projects also include work overseas in Iceland, Finland, Germany, Sweden and Great Britain.
FitzGibbons was named official state artist in 2012, among other accolades and awards, according to his website. His work has appeared across Texas and elsewhere in the U.S., earning more than 30 commissions for work in several nations.
"Working with Bill FitzGibbons on these public art displays will provide an exciting attraction to downtown Texarkana and a unique opportunity for local artists to learn more about this medium," said Keith Beason, program manager for this grant, in a dispatch last week.
In an interview, Beason said the Cultural District Grants must be completed within a year and the city has already talked with the artist.
"He is very interested in this project," Beason said. Total funding will be a bit more than the grant award. The artist has contributors and they're looking at other grant opportunities, too.
Expect progress on the project within the next year, he said.
The LED light projects include the Grim's iconic, rooftop sign.
"What we have in mind is RGB (red, green and blue) LED lighting that will be against the courthouse, ArtSparK and the Grim sign," Beason said.
The lights will often be white light but also provide for artistic exhibits throughout the year, he explained, so the colors can be changed.
"That might be relevant to a cultural event that's going on, a holiday or anything like that," Beason said. They'll be set up at the ground level and shine up against the courthouse, for example.
"And hopefully as we do exhibits, it will drive traffic downtown," Beason said, noting FitzGibbons was an attractive artist because he's from Texas and has created several of these light sculptures around the world.
"The fact that he is relatively local is intriguing to us," Beason said. "Also, a large portion of his art exhibits are in San Antonio, so doing light sculptures at the Alamo and the Kinetic Skyline and some of those things have been impressive."
The ongoing first phase of the Courthouse Square Connections Project funded via TCA grant money includes signage work, such as an over-the-road street banner system that's being installed, welcome signage at the Museum of Regional History and George Tobolowsky sculpture near the courthouse.
Art helps bring people to downtown Texarkana and there's an economic benefit for businesses there, too, Beason believes.
"I would like for people to look into Bill FitzGibbons' work. I think that he's excited about the project because it is a very unique building," Beason said.
People here may overlook just how unique it is to have a building on the state line, but here's an artist who wants to be engaged with the community on this art project, he said.
The Texarkana Arts and Historic District serves as a regional marketing initiative with a historic downtown focus, several agencies partnering with both cities of Texarkana.
(Visit visittexarkanadistrict.com/courthouse-square-connections online to learn more about the project. To learn more about the artist, visit Billfitzgibbons.com.)