West Side Charleston Public Art Tour

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Debbie Amos created Bubbles in 2011. The painted metal sculpture also has a functional use as a bike rack. Despite the sturdy material, Bubbles appears light and whimsical. The blue green paint helps Bubbles contrast from the cinder block wall and pavement that serve as its setting, while not distracting from the larger landscape of Haddad Riverfront Park. Bubbles is one of four sculptures in Charleston that serve as bike racks, the others being Chris Dutch's Bike Man, Jeff Fetty's Quiet Elements, and Ian Bode's The Passenger.

2. King Alfred and His Court

King Alfred and His Court is one of the oldest sculptures in Charleston's West Side, having been created in 1990. The piece is composed of five nine feet tall metal flowers arranged in a semi-circle. Though initially appearing rather simple, the work offers a multitude of complexities for the viewer to consider through composition, naming, and site.

3. Elk City

This planter box was designed by Bernice Deakins as part of a project to bring more art to Charleston's West Side. The Charleston Main Streets West Side Urban Design Committee commissioned four such planters, each limited to a palette of primary colors. Further funding for the project came from Charleston Urban Renewal Authority and a host of private donors. The planters were built from scratch and painted in situ. Deakins' contribution features the words "Elk City" on the front, as West Washington Street serves as the entrance to the area commonly known as Elk City. The backside of the box depicts what appear to be daffodils. The piece was completed in 2017.

4. Dreamer

Located at the entrance to Charleston's West Side, Dreamer is a fitting welcome to an area on the rise. The work was sponsored by the Office of Public Art, Main Street Charleston, and Gardner's Drycleaning, which is housed in the building. Artist Dan Toro was selected from over forty artists after a national search. Toro travelled from his native Laramie, Wyoming to create the paint on block mural in 2019. Painting took thirteen days. Dreamer depicts a man sitting on a bench during his lunch break. He has a lunchbox, thermos, and sandwich — which is based on a reuben sandwich from local institution, The Grill. The figure appears lost in thought. This is reflected in the stenciled background, which becomes increasingly colorful and whimsical as it wraps around the building. Not wanting to further saturate Charleston's public art with West Virginia's state bird, the cardinal, Toro instead included finches in the stencil. Another symbol that appears in the work is the sugar maple, West Virginia's state tree. Finally, a painted metal finch perches on the top of the building, blurring the lines between Dreamer being two-dimensional and three-dimensional art.

5. Buildings

After applying for the commission on a whim — the artist typically works with multimedia vestments and shoes — Shawna Kinder-Sigmon painted this planter in 2016. The work was one of four paint on metal planters sponsored by West Side Charleston Main Streets, Charleston Urban Renewal Authority, and private donors. Though the piece was initially completed in 2016, Kinder-Sigmon later repainted it in 2019, as the box was damaged when someone burned trash in it. The mosaic-like painting style on the planter captures elevations of real buildings in Elk City. Two sides are bathed in bright yellow sunlight, while the other two sides are cloaked in the cool blue of night. Buildings is maintained by nearby Winter Floral and Antiques.

6. El Jardin del Amor

El Jardin del Amor, which translates to Garden of Love, was created by Jesse Corlis. The 2015 mural was commissioned by the owners of the Mexican restaurant Mi Cocina de Amor for their new outdoor dining space. Corlis designed the mural in photoshop before creating a physical sketch based on input from the restaurant's owners. El Jardin del Amor incorporates a bevy of traditional Mexican symbolism. The two faceted moon in the top left represents the owners of Mi Cocina de Amor and patrons of the mural. Three sugar skulls scattered throughout the work represent the owners' late parents, while the dog represents a beloved family pet. The Virgin of Guadalupe appears on a light pole, keeping a protective eye on diners and passerby. Mi Cocina de Amor's logo appears above the door in the center of the mural while birds, plants, and leaves swirl about the energetic work. El Jardin del Amor was one of Corlis' first major commissions and helped launch the artist's career.

7. West Side Wonder Mural

West Side Wonder Mural is a 2014 paint on brick mural by Charley Jupiter Hamilton. The figural representation of Charleston’s West Side includes hundreds of famous figures, local personalities, and community members. The mural has become an icon that acknowledges tradition in the West Side while embracing the community’s positive change.

8. Elk City Mural

Like many of the works in this area, Elk City Mural is a community collaboration. Created in 2015 by Josh Martin, an art professor at West Virginia State University, the paint on concrete piece was enhanced by contributions from West Side locals. West Side Main Street commissioned the work as a source of pride for residents. Martin painted geometricized hills and the outline of an elk, which is defined via negative space. Community members painted small additions throughout the hills of the work. These range from cartoon figures, to flags, to objects important to their painters. The mural wraps around the building and the side that faces Tennessee Avenue features the words "Elk City." West Side has slowly grown into the Elk City moniker over the years due to its proximity to the Elk River. Martin envisioned the mural as one that combines the natural prehistory roots of the area with the current expansion and revitalization of its human culture.

9. Untitled

This untitled graffiti wall was created by Justin "Ketchup" Withrow and fellow artist Edistsew. The paint on block works were completed in 2016. Withrow works as a graffiti artist based in Columbus, Ohio and Edistsew is a fashion designer. The two artists have also completed another work in Charleston, No Limit Fitness' Planes in Space.

10. John C. Norman Blueprints

Staci Leech-Cornell’s John C. Norman Blueprints was completed in 2016. The paint on metal planter is one of four painted planters commissioned by Charleston Main Streets West Side Urban Design Committee, Charleston Urban Renewal Authority, and private donors. Leech-Cornell chose to use her planter to honor John C. Norman (1892-1967), an influential West Virginia architect. Norman was born in New Jersey and studied architecture and structural engineering at Carnegie Technical Institute. He then moved to Charleston in 1919 and became the state’s second African American architect. He was also the state’s first African American structural engineer. Over the course of his career, Norman designed a great number of residential, commercial, and civic buildings. Leech-Cornell’s tribute has the planter painted almost entirely blue to resemble architectural drafting materials. Thin white lines outline various elevations of a building. It is unclear if Leech-Cornell’s imagery is taken from a real drawing Norman created, or if it is imagined. One possibility is that it depicts the historic building behind the planter as it looked when first constructed. Regardless, John C. Norman Blueprints serves well to tie historical heritage to modern beautification.

11. Tiger Box

Nichole Westfall’s Tiger Box was completed in 2018. The work consists of a painted electric box. The piece includes a cartoon tiger in front of a landscape with hills, a river, and a rising or setting sun. The tiger, hanging lanterns, furling clouds, and clearly defined fore, middle, and background all suggest a strong Asian influence on Westfall’s style for this piece. Though the natural world elements of the work are bright and peaceful, the tiger’s expression is extremely unsettling. It’s perked ears, wide bright yellow eyes, large grin, and lolling blue tongue suggest that it is perhaps eyeing the viewer as its next prey. Westfall was born and raised in West Virginia, though they are now based out of Colorado.

12. Red Cardinal

One of four painted planters in Charleston’s West Side, Red Cardinal was created by Ian Bode in 2017. The paint on metal work serves as both a functional plant receptacle and aesthetic asset to the area. Bode’s work has been described as celebrating Charleston and the artist himself supports this saying, “It’s what I see. It’s how I feel about it… I think a lot of Charleston is in my art.”1 Red Cardinal is enthusiastically positive and energetic. Rayonnant lines of color, stylized cartoon hearts and stars, jagged mountains, and bright red birds all vie for space on a checkerboard background. The graphically intensive work denies a coherent narrative, though each element carries strong symbolic weight. These motifs persist throughout all four sides of the work and each side is unique. Bode’s work celebrates Elk City through image and form, allowing the viewer to connect with the work on their own terms.

13. Eventually Elk City and Jarrett Court Murals

Eventually Elk City and Jarrett Court are two murals by artist Kayleigh Phillips. Eventually Elk City is a reconceptualization of an advertisement from the 1900s, while Jarrett Court is new. The two murals are part of efforts to expand public art in Charleston's West Side. Both paint on brick works were completed in 2018.

14. Let the Good Times Roll

Kayleigh Phillips' work Let the Good Times Roll adorns the loading dock of American Billiards & Outdoor Recreations. The mural depicts a cartoon elk — apropos for an area nicknamed Elk City — playing billiards. The lintel of building's doors serves as the billiards table. On the right, lettering in a variety of fonts reads, "Let the good times roll." Only a few colors are used in the piece: yellow, blue, pink, green and Black. Both the lettering and color schemes are reminiscent of prints, one of Phillips' favorite artistic mediums. The simple clean style of the work belies another one of Phillips' influences, old cartoons like Felix the Cat. Let the Good Times Roll is one of many hidden artistic gems in West Side Charleston.

15. Edgewood Blooming

Edgewood blooming was created in 2017 by Jim and Joan Namey, owners of Appalachian Metal Fabricating. At eight feet tall, the 475 pound steel sculpture makes quite the statement in tiny Edgewood Park. The sculpture was commissioned by the Edgewood Garden Club for a total of $5,000. It took three years for the organization to raise funds and select an artist. Though the Nameys are based out of Kenna, WV, Joan grew up on the West Side, making this project a personally significant endeavor. Edgewood Blooming was intended to be eye-catching and unique. The garden club wanted something that would beautify the neighborhood and encourage passerby to stop and admire the piece. The name of the work was chosen not by the artist, but by the club. Edgewood Blooming was chosen as a play on words. The piece depicts blooming flowers and is located on Edgewood Drive, but the name also suggests the revitalization of the Edgewood neighborhood community. In addition to the artwork itself, Edgewood Garden Club maintains the gardens that surround it.

16. IN PLACE - Girl

Alternately known colloquially as Portrait of a Student, Girl is a 2019 work by Debra Rayhill. Rayhill typically creates inventive watercolor portraits. This piece is paint on metal and part of the city of Charleston's IN PLACE initiative, which placed small works of public art throughout the city. Rayhill's Girl, like all other IN PLACE pieces, interfaces directly with its surroundings. In the case if this piece, the tangle of ivy and bushes serve as a stand-in for the young woman's hair. The community title of the work suggests that the figure is a student and this is supported by Rayhill's placement of Girl near Stonewall Middle School. Rayhill's work is unassuming and simple, though once one knows of its existence, the local landscape is enhanced.

17. IN PLACE - Tiger Portal

Tiger Portal is another IN PLACE work. Created in 2019 by Kayleigh Phillips, this piece is paint on metal. The work consists of two separate pieces of metal, one of which is placed further up a hill than the other. On the higher piece, the top half of a cartoon tiger emerges from what appears to be a doorway, while on the lower piece, the tiger's bottom half is entering an identical doorway. The implication of the work is that the two portals are link, a fact which seems to greatly confuse the tiger. This Phillips work serves to beautify an otherwise empty urban street corner.

18. West Side Wellness

West Side Wellness is a 2019 creation by Allison Butcher. The sizeable paint on block mural covers two walls of the West Side Wellness Center's parking lot. Figuratively surreal treatments of regeneration, regrowth, and healing are appropriate, both for a wellness center and considering Butcher's past experience as a nurse.

19. IN PLACE - Head Wrap

Staci Leech-Cornell's Head Wrap captures the essence of the IN PLACE project in an unparalleled way. Leech, a Nitro, WV based artist, created the work in 2019. The piece consists of paint on metal, though Leech-Cornell also manipulated the appearance of concrete blocks. The paint on metal component of the work peeks above a concrete retaining wall and depicts a Black woman wearing a bright read head wrap tied with a bow. Leech-Cornell painted the wall Black to create a negative space for the portrait, which cleverly causes the woman's silhouette to be suggested by the cracks of the wall itself. While other place such as Bob Ross and Girl use the site as their figures' hair, Head Wrap does the opposite, installing the hair but using the site for the silhouette. This seamless integration of the contrived and natural is a triumphant expression of the IN PLACE initiative's mission to incorporate art with its surroundings.

20. West Side Tile Mural

West Side Tile Mural, also known as 42 West Side, was created primarily by Rob Cleland and Jeff Miller. The 2010 work was placed at a bus stop on busy Washington Street West, allowing it plenty of exposure. The piece consists of six images, each composed of 120 ceramic tiles. Cleland and Miller created central images with figures of children and adults engaged in a variety of activities such as playing, learning, and waiting for the bus. One of images states "WE ARE ONE" in block letters. Each of the central images is surrounded by tiles created by local residents, business owners, and other community members. The work as a whole is a collaborative community effort and indicative of West Side Charleston's renewed emphasis on camaraderie and solidarity.

21. IN PLACE - Cat

Artist Amanda Jane Miller's contribution to the IN PLACE project was this piece titled Cat. The paint on metal work was installed at the North Charleston Community Center in 2019. Cat was one of the last IN PLACE works to be completed and stands at the head of the Carriage Trail. Miller typically works as an illustrator and printmaker, so the materials used for Cat are atypical for her art. However, this depiction of a feline is firmly a part of Miller's rumpled cartoon style. Though all IN PLACE works are made to integrate with their environment, Miller's is something of a departure from other works in the series. Most other pieces use natural features within the work — bushes as hair or an umbrella keeping away ivy rather than water. However, Miller's piece is "in place" not because it incorporates its surroundings directly, but because a lone cat something one would not be surprised, or might even expect, to see.

This Tour is a Driving or Biking Tour.

West Side Charleston Public Art Tour

Created by Iain MacKay on January 23rd 2021, 5:55:40 pm.

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Description

In the past few years, West Side Charleston has undergone a renaissance and urban revitalization. One of the clearest indicators of the progress made is the proliferation of public murals, planter boxes, sculptures, and site specific works in the area. This tour draws heavily from a tour by Charleston's Office of Public Art and was made with the office's cooperation. To learn more visit: http://publicartcharleston.org/.

Entries on This Tour

West Side Charleston Public Art Tour

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