Downtown Rock Hill displays student art

By Jeremy Gatlin
Special to the Johnsonian

Students in the Sculpture 1 class construct poles that will be displayed in downtown Rock Hill. The ideas for the poles have to be presented to the Rock Hill City Council before they are displayed downtown. Photo by Stephanie Eaton • eatons@thejohnsonain.comTake a good look at downtown Rock Hill because it won’t look the same for long.

In an effort to attract more students to downtown Rock Hill, the Winthrop Department of Fine Arts and the city of Rock Hill have created the Pole Project.

“The city is providing 10-foot poles with 10-inch diameters so the sculptures can be mounted on them,” said senior sculpture major John Williams.

Williams said the fine arts students are working on building 12-foot metal sculptures based on the 12-inch models they created.

“It’s to help enliven and build the environment of downtown and to improve economic development in the area,” said department chair of fine arts Tom Stanley.

The art students are working on real projects and not on something that will never see the light of day, Stanley said.

“I’m excited by this project,” said Shaun Cassidy, fine arts professor of Sculpture 1.  “It’s pretty exciting for students in a Sculpture 1 class to be able to put something out in a public venue.”

There are many precautions to take while working on the sculptures because they will end up in a public place, said sophomore sculpture and drawing major Sarah Gregory.

“Nothing can be too low for people to grab,” Gregory said.

Cassidy said the students are learning new techniques while working on the project.

“I’ve learned how to wield and use different kinds of machinery,” Gregory said.

Williams learned he can do things with steel that he can’t do with anything else.

“It’s incredibly strong for its weight,” Williams said.

The students are required to work in teams and bounce ideas off each other, Gregory said.

“The different approaches each of the groups has taken is really interesting,” she said.

The students have learned how to come up with innovative ideas that will appeal to the public.

Students have to present their ideas to the city officials so they will support them.

Stanley said the city initiated the project last spring, and it should be completed by the end of the semester.