Carmel Mayor Jim Brainard knows a lot of residents aren’t a big fan of the city’s newest sculpture, “Morning Sun,” which was recently installed on Range Line Road near The Proscenium.
He doesn’t love it either, as he told participants in a Feb. 11 virtual town hall meeting hosted by City Councilor Jeff Worrell.
The mayor makes the final decision on public art after consulting with professionals and the city’s art advisory committee. So he’s open to hearing feedback of all kinds.
“If somebody thinks we really made a mistake, I’m willing to take the blame or praise for that,” Brainard said. “Somebody elected needs to be responsible, but that doesn’t mean we don’t have a lot of input.”
Brainard said he plans to launch a new system for artists to submit their work online to be considered as public art in Carmel.
“We think that will attract artists from all over, as well as a lot of good local artists,” Brainard said. “We may get some things we wouldn’t have gotten otherwise for the community.”
Brainard said he is looking forward to starting the process of creating the system, which is expected to launch in 2022.
Until then, he said he’s willing to accept suggestions from the community on future public art installations or even moving those already in place.
“Isn’t it wonderful the community is talking about art?” he said. “Other places are talking about why they have potholes in their roads.”
