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Greater Charleston West Virginia Public Art Tour

Zone 7 of 7: West Side

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This is a contributing entry for Greater Charleston West Virginia Public Art Tour and only appears as part of that tour.Learn More.

IN PLACE - Head Wrap

Introduction

Text-to-speech Audio

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.

Images

IN PLACE - Head Wrap.

Plant community, Plant, Tree, Sky

Sources

Charleston putting new "face" on landscape with in-place mural projects, WCHS. April 19th 2019. Accessed January 26th 2021. https://wchstv.com/news/local/charleston-putting-new-face-on-landscape-with-in-place-mural-projects.

Eye of the Beholder: Public art fits in seamlessly around Charleston, Charleston Gazette-Mail. June 23rd 2019. Accessed January 26th 2021. https://www.wvgazettemail.com/life/eye-of-the-beholder-public-art-fits-in-seamlessly-around-charleston/article_2a10c3f6-315e-5004-b895-8d6d9797d752.html.

Leech-Cornell, Staci. About the artist, Staci Leech Cornell. Accessed January 26th 2021. http://stacileechcornell.com/.

Leech-Cornell, Staci. Staci Leech-Cornell, Instagram. April 19th 2019. Accessed January 26th 2021. https://www.instagram.com/p/BwdVtAIHCXL/.

Public Art to be Installed During City-Wide Clean Up, Charleston WV. Accessed January 26th 2021. https://charlestonwv.gov/news-items/thu-04182019-1557/public-art-clean.

Image Sources(Click to expand)

Office of Public Art, Charleston WV. Accessed January 26, 2021. https://gisweb.cityofcharleston.org/storymaps/arttour/#.

Additional Information