The Arts Council of Greater Lansing, in partnership with Adams Outdoor Advertising, is excited to announce its ninth year of “Art in the Sky” billboards, featuring the work of 10 Greater Lansing area artists.
Established in 2011, the billboard program has afforded the Arts Council the opportunity to form not only a successful collaboration with Adams Outdoor Advertising, but multiple partnerships with artists from across the Tri-County Region who help to provide a collective body of public art to the area while marketing their own individual entrepreneurial pursuits.
“These billboards have become a highly-recognized staple of the Greater Lansing skyline,” said Arts Council executive director, Deborah E. Mikula. “They are a creative fixture that have become extremely valued in our greater community and reflect our growing identity as an art-centered region,” Mikula said.
The 2018/2019 billboards will begin going up this week; so area residents should be on the watch for sightings of the works as they start appearing within the city and beyond. This year introduces not only the traditional billboards but several digital billboards as well, adding an exciting new dimension to the project.
More than 50 Lansing-area artists submitted work for consideration to the Arts Council this year, and 10 were chosen by an esteemed panel through a careful scoring process. This year’s awardees include regional artists Ryan Holmes, Dennis Preston, Paul Vetne, Mary Ablao, Tracie Davis, Steph Hogan, David Carrigan, Ruth Egnater, Jonathan Cheeseman and Vincent Brady.
“The “Art in the Sky” billboards give life to the work of the artists in our area, highlighting their talent and making it available to all,” said Mikula. “And they also further our expansive placemaking efforts as a community.”
To date, the Arts Council’s “Art in the Sky” initiative has featured the works of nearly 60 individual artists, bringing art to the masses via the medium of outdoor advertising. To see this year’s billboards and to learn more about the “Art in the Sky” program and artists, visit the Arts Council’s website at lansingarts.org [lansingarts.org].
Founded in 1965, the Arts Council of Greater Lansing exists to support, strengthen and promote art, culture and creativity in the capital region. For more information, visit www.lansingarts.org.
