A piece of public artwork may be coming to Alquina Blue Arrows Park within the next few years thanks to a partnership with Indiana University this summer.
The park, at 4397 E. Alquina Road, is the former location of Alquina Elementary School. The IU Rural Placemaking Studio is partnering with the park board to develop a piece of public art for the park.
“The IU Rural Placemaking Studio makes community heritage, hopes and dreams visual and tangible,” said Denny Spinner, executive director of IU Center for Rural Engagement. “All rural communities have something that makes them special, and the IU Rural Placemaking Studio helps residents create connection around their unique assets.”
Becky Marvel, a founding board member for the park, said she is hopeful that something memorializing the school can be created. The park already includes a picnic shelter, playground and basketball court. Restrooms will be added in the near future.
For the public artwork, the Rural Placemaking Studio will facilitate community feedback sessions, develop a scope of work and create designs for implementation on a timeline that aligns with the project. Community-identified projects include murals, parklets, pre-architectural designs, wayfinding signage and public art installations.
The studio will offer dedicated support and technical assistance that empowers residents to bring their vision to life.
When a design has been selected, financing its installation will be up to the park, Marvel said. The park has an active fundraising and event schedule. A kickball tournament is coming on May 31, a community yard sale on June 21, and the Alquina Blue Arrows Park Fall Festival on Oct. 4. Several work days are planned.
Students studying comprehensive design, creative placemaking and community arts engagement will use their talents to collaborate with community partners, working alongside Jon Racek, program director of comprehensive design at the Eskenazi School and director of the ServeDesign Center, and the Center for Rural Engagement team.
“When students and community members work together, the result is more than just a mural,” said Racek. “These collaborations help build relationships and give communities a sense of momentum to keep making positive changes.”
“There is no substitute for the kind of experiential learning the Rural Placemaking Studio provides IU students,” said IU Eskenazi School Dean Peg Faimon. “When they are serving real clients in small communities not unlike those they may have grown up in, our students have an organic engagement experience that grows their capacity to design with the user in mind. The students rank their involvement in the Rural Placemaking Studio among the most meaningful experiences of their college career.”
Marvel said Alquina will get a piece of art commemorating the area and the students will get experience in gathering community input and designing art that captures local spirit. It’s a “win-win,” she said.
She added, “You don’t know but that maybe one of the next top designers might be getting experience with your project.”