The Artcraft Alley’s stars have been replaced with kites for a fresh, new look.
The kites, which cost $23,000 for fabrication and installation, were installed in mid-April. The bicentennial stars previously hanging from the alley showed signs of wear and needed to be replaced, said Ken Kosky, director of Festival Country Indiana, the Johnson County tourism organization.
Artcraft Alley’s stars were installed in November 2022 to mark Franklin and Johnson County’s bicentennials. The art installation was designed so that the metal structure would be permanent while featured items, like the stars, could be swapped out, Kosky said. The stars were up from spring to fall in 2023 and 2024.
The stars had two years to shine, so officials wanted to try a new shape for the public art piece.
“The partners in the project – Festival Country, the city of Franklin, and the Franklin Public Art Advisory Commission – all wanted to try something fresh and decided to change the shape and colors of the nearly 200 items that would be placed in the alley,” Kosky said.
The kites are a nod to Benjamin Franklin, who is already a recognizable figure in the city’s tourism scene, with the green-glasses clad statesman gracing the side of Iozzo’s on Jefferson.
“We landed on kites as a nod to Ben Franklin, and because having kites would allow us to have the kites provide horizontal interest, but have kite tails with vertical interest,” Kosky said. “The kite tails are treated with blacklight paint so they glow at night.”
The kite installation should “last significantly longer than the original one,” and could last for 10 years. The kites are made of polycarbonate and can stay up year-round, while the original stars were made of fabric and had to be removed in the winter, Kosky said.
Expo Arts created the kites for the new installation. The company also originally installed the stars previously at Artcraft Alley, as well as the lanterns and cherry blossom tree sculpture in Kuji Alley, Kosky said. The company also worked on Festival County’s Visitor Center’s new USA 250th Anniversary photo spot.
The city was awarded a $10,000 grant from the Indiana Arts Commission, and the rest of the cost was paid by the Franklin Public Art Advisory Commission and Festival Country.
Five extra kites were created to hang up in the visitor center, so the organization can use them to promote the Artcraft Alley and other public art around Franklin and Johnson County.
“We hung five of the kites in the Festival Country Visitor Center so that when visitors see them, we can encourage those visitors to walk downtown and see the activated alleys and other art,” Kosky said, “and we can also tell them about the murals and other art in the surrounding communities.”
Even more art is coming to downtown Franklin. Expo Arts is putting together a series of back-lit vignettes that will be installed in Veterans Alley and will be patriotic themed, Kosky said. The vignettes will add to the display of flags that already hang in the alley between the Franklin Elks Lodge and a law office near the intersection of Jefferson Street and East Court Street.
“So when those are installed this summer, there will be three dynamic alleys in downtown Franklin,” he said. “We have seen so many people take their prom pictures, graduation pictures or family portraits in the alley and share those via social media. That helps spread the word about the alleys and the downtown and gets more people to the area to support the local businesses.”
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