Winners of Hilton Head large-scale 'Public Art' competition unveiled
The winners of a public art competition running on Hilton Head Island were unveiled Tuesday at a reception held at the Coastal Discovery Museum at Honey Horn.
The event, which features 19 large-scale sculptures on exhibit at the 68-acre property, first opened for viewing in late September.
Sponsored by the Community Foundation of the Lowcountry in partnership with the Town of Hilton Head Island, the biennial exhibition includes both a juried competition made up of nationally recognized artists, gallery owners and art enthusiasts, as well as a "People's Choice" competition.
For the "Purchase Prize," the jury selected "Setting Sun" created by Greeley, Pa.-based artist Tom Holmes.
The 19-by-19-by-16-foot sculpture consists of bright orange radials extending from a steel base.
"The radials are a visually stunning metaphor for how we perceive the cycles of nature," said Holmes, whose work has been selected for a number of national, international and solo exhibitions. "The sun does not actually set, but human perceptions and language cause it to seem so."
The piece was purchased for $30,000 using the foundation's Public Art Fund with the help of participating sponsors and will be donated to the town of Hilton Head so that it may be added to the town's collection of public art.
The fund, which also accepts donations from the public, was created by the foundation in 2006 as way to purchase and build a public art collection on the island.
It has not been determined where "Setting Sun" will be placed, but foundation officials said the town will begin working through the process over the next few months to pinpoint a location.In addition, several "People's Choice" award winners were announced on Tuesday.
Robert Sadlemire, of Myrtle Beach, took first prize for his "Nature's Journey," Eileen Blyth and Mark Finely, of Columbia, took second prize for their sculpture "Hanging" and Andrew Denton, of Greenville, N.C., went home with third prize for "Lovearch."
The winners were chosen by members of the public who cast both online and paper ballots during the first month of the exhibition.
People's Choice winners received cash prizes of $3500 for first place, $2500 for second place and $1500 for third place.
The competition, which featured artists as far away as Hawaii, is the third such public art showing the foundation has held since 2011.
Past "Purchase Prize" winners have included Greenville, N.C.-based artist Jonathan Bowling whose piece "Family" was purchased in 2011 and can be viewed in Chaplin Linear Park, and Brooklyn-N.Y. artist John Clement whose piece "Carocol" was purchased in 2013 and is on display at Shelter Cove Community Park.
Other public art pieces donated by the fund include "Charles E. Fraser" at Compass Rose Park, "Sail Around" at the corner of U.S. Highway 278 and Arrow Road and "Sail" at the Hilton Head Regional Airport.
The exhibition will continue to run through Dec. 31 at the Coastal Discovery Museum.
Follow reporter Mindy Lucas on Twitter at twitter.com/MindyatIPBG.
Related content:
- New Public Art Exhibition opens on Hilton Head Thursday, Sept. 29, 2015
This story was originally published November 17, 2015 at 4:30 PM with the headline "Winners of Hilton Head large-scale 'Public Art' competition unveiled."