Columbus makes art. There’s no doubt about it – even a global pandemic can’t stop it. Every year, the Short North Alliance presents its mural series around the Short North Arts District. This year, the series One World features 11 talented artists from countries around the world, representing a whopping five continents.
The series started back in 2012 with the Bicentennial celebrations in Columbus but was so enjoyed by the community that the SNA found a way to repeat it every year since.
“What the temporary mural series does is it allows artists who never get to experience themselves as public artists in public space to experience themselves in that way,” says Betsy Pandora, executive director of the SNA.
“This was our creative way to enlighten public space with public art,” Pandora says. Luckily, this meant that the pandemic had little effect on the timeliness of displaying the mural series, since the art was already done. The SNA was able to open the series only a few days later than it had anticipated.
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Global Art During a Global Pandemic
The Short North galleries have heavy input on which artists are featured in the showcase each year.
“It’s incredibly intentional each year when we collaborate with our gallery community on the curation of that series to really leave it up to them to select which artists are the ones they want to put forward to showcase,” says Pandora. “It really is a collaborative brainstorm with our galleries around what is the collective consciousness and message that we want to discuss within a given year.”
In a time when the value of community is heightened, this series perfectly celebrates cultural differences and highlights the importance of representation in art.
“It was so important to (the galleries) that this year’s series really showcased global diversity,” Pandora says, “and that we have a big and substantial discussion on the importance of us being a part of the same world community. Every single person around the world has this shared experience of the pandemic.”
Since January, when the galleries were selecting the focus and artists to be showcased in the mural series, so much has changed.
“The images that showcase the work of artists and even the individual from different countries are so interesting and insightful because they are so relatable,” Pandora says. “I think it makes the series so much more poignant than it would have been otherwise.”
So next time you’re in the Short North, be sure to safely check out the artwork nestled between brick and mortar on the historic buildings. From up and down High Street, Second Street and Wall Street, you can’t miss the astounding images.
“We’re looking to give people a sense of joy and connectivity in a time when we’ve not felt a lot of joy,” Pandora says. “We’ve been unfortunately so disconnected from each other. There’s something very powerful about seeing these artworks in public space that creates the sense of belonging and that sense of community that we all so very much want right now.”
Sarah Robinson is a contributing editor. Feedback welcome at feedback@cityscenemediagroup.com.
Rocco Falleti is an associate editor. Feedback welcome at rfalleti@cityscenecolumbus.com.
