Major artistic initiative | Dix Park Conservancy announces new initiative to attract more international artists to Triangle

RALEIGH, North Carolina (WTVD) — Dix Park Conservancy (DPC) announced Friday the launch of a new initiative aimed at attracting more international artists to Raleigh.

The idea behind this initiative is to highlight the importance of the arts in the Triangle. According to a press release, it will feature locally and globally renowned artists, as well as collaborations with the city and other organizations.

“Public art is the most accessible and inclusive art of all,” said Marjorie Hodges, chair of the Dix Park Arts Task Force. “You don’t have to buy a ticket. You can access it at any time, and most of the time it’s interaction.

The initiative kicked off with a celebration Friday, revealing a brand new sculpture by visiting sculptor Dewitt Godfrey in the park.

It is called “Attun”. Made up of 80 steel cylinders, the sculpture measures 18 feet high and 150 feet long.

“I am humbled that my work will be part of this special, reimagined space for Raleigh’s diverse communities,” Godfrey said in a press release.

Other upcoming art installations are sculptures by Lamar Whidbee, Mark Reigelman II and a poem by Johnny Lee Chapman for the Gipson Play Plaza. According to the press release, each piece will be adapted to “highlight the natural landscape and history of Dix Park.”

Other initiative projects on the horizon include:

• DPC will present two troll sculptures by artist Thomas Doambo.
• DPC is developing a public poetry project with Jaki Shelton Green. She is the first African American and third woman to be named North Carolina’s poet laureate.
• DPC will partner with the Office of Raleigh Arts to develop an artist-in-residence program based in one of the park’s renovated historic buildings.

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