SPACES Sculpture Trail expands to new site

MADISON COUNTY – Organizers have launched a new site for the SPACES Sculpture Trail that features sculptures and artwork in Huntsville, along with the City of Madison and Madison County.

Started in 2010, SPACES brings new art pieces across Madison County every two years. This year’s trail features 39 sculptures by 27 artists from 18 states. The SPACES Sculpture Trail is the largest revolving installation of sculpture in Alabama.

SPACES is a collaborative project led by founding partners Arts Huntsville, Alabama A&M University, Huntsville Museum of Art, Lowe Mill ARTS & Entertainment and the University of Alabama in Huntsville.

Since the founding of SPACES, “partners have welcomed Madison Arts Council, Ditto Landing and this year Stovehouse,” Allison Dillon-Jauken said. She serves as executive director of Arts Huntsville.

“As Stovehouse reinvents the form and function of our century-old bricks and beams here, we are inspired by artists like Charlie Brouwer who create meaningful art in unexpected ways,” Steven Jackson said. Jackson is Director of Marketing and Communications for Stovehouse.

Stovehouse owners placed Brouwer’s “He Looked Back” at their east entrance. Jackson said the artwork represents an embodiment of the Martin brothers who built a company that put food on tables of Huntsville families for decades.

“We love SPACES because all of the pieces challenge viewers to dream up their own stories behind them, to reinvent their ideas of art and to begin seeing the everyday as extraordinary,” Jackson said.

The community is encouraged to explore the current trail with the free “SPACES & Places” app for iPhone and Android. This app features not only the SPACES Sculpture Trail sculptures but also local murals. The trail has almost 50 pieces of sculpture.

The app offers an interactive map that shows the current location of sculptures. “We have so many fresh, distinctive sculptures on this year’s trail, and with new murals popping up all the time, this is a great way to stay connected to the creativity in our community,” Dillon-Jauken said.

In Madison, the SPACES Sculpture Trail includes art pieces at Dublin Park, Madison City Hall, Madison Elementary School and several spots downtown.

For more information, visit artsmadison.org or artshuntsville.org/spaces.