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Revelation Press Release
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
March 8, 2005
St. Augustine Artist Joe Segal Installs Outdoor Sculpture At San Marco Branch Library
JACKSONVILLE, FL – St. Augustine-based artist Joe Segal has created a large-scale outdoor sculpture for the renovated San Marco Branch Library, 1513 LaSalle St. The sculpture will be installed Wednesday, March 16 for ‘Phase I’ of an integrated sculpture/landscape design work. The project was commissioned as part of Jacksonville’s Art in Public Places Program. To date, 9 different works have been unveiled to the public.
Segal’s artwork consists of two large sculptures, made of colored cast concrete with stone aggregate, placed at right-angles to each other. Landscaping and a sidewalk are part of the design (‘Phase II’), and will also facilitate pedestrian direction to the new main entrance of the renovated library. One sculpture, 14-feet long by 4-feet high, doubles as a sign, marking the location of the San Marco Branch Library and Balis Community Center. The second sculpture, adjacent, is a 12-foot high tower. Both pieces are hand-chiseled along inner edges of a linear gap down the middle, producing a stacked, layered look that plays on Segal’s trademark minimalism and the emphasis of the ‘hand-made mark.’ The two pieces compliment the exterior design of the building, which incorporates long, low Prairie-style lines and walls of stacked sandstone.
Joe Segal has lived and worked in St. Augustine for over 20 years. As a graduate of Flagler College, he studied with nationally recognized sculptor Enzo Torcoletti, and later studied in New York at The Sculpture Center. His work is represented in many private and corporate collections including The Forbes Collection in New York, The Lowe Museum in Coral Gables, and The Bass Museum in Miami. Segal has exhibited extensively throughout Florida as well as in Atlanta and New York. In 2000 and 2003, Segal was a recipient of a Fostering Vitality in the Arts grant from The Community Foundation. In 2001 he received an Individual Artist Fellowship from the state of Florida, and in 2004 an Artistic Enhancement Grant, also from the state of Florida.
“My challenge for the site was to create a sculpture which would also serve as a sign,” said Segal. “It was important that it have strong enough visual impact for motorists and at the same time be inviting for pedestrians to interact with. I also wanted the work to integrate smoothly with the building’s overall design.” Segal will be giving a lecture on his art and research on an evening to be announced, after Phase II of the work has been installed (tentatively mid-April).
“Joe Segal is a very important artist in our North Florida region,” said Jeffrey Dunn, Chairman of the Art in Public Places Commission. “And as his reputation grows, this installation at the San Marco Branch Library will become a significant part of our city’s Art in Public Places collection.”
The San Marco Branch Library is one of 12 renovated branch libraries funded by the voter-approved Better Jacksonville Plan which also includes six new branch libraries and a new 300,000 square-foot Main Library.
The Art in Public Places Ordinance, passed by the City Council in 1997, mandates the dedication of three-quarters of one percent of construction and design costs of new or renovated public facilities for the purchase of public art. The Art in Public Places Program (APP) is directed by the city’s appointed Public Art Commission, with technical assistance provided by the Cultural Council of Greater Jacksonville. For more information, contact the Art in Public Places Office at 358-3600, x 11, or visit www.culturalcouncil.org.