By Barbara Arnstein
Every day in Springville, on exterior walls and fences, under benches, on “street furniture” and other outdoor plac-es, public art is on display. It brings color, culture, novelty, and artistic talent to the streets of the village and great happiness to its residents and visitors.
Should you wish to see the sixteen works of art for yourself, you could either walk around Springville, and enjoy encountering them at random, or consult this handy guide to their locations (www.springvillearts.org). They are at: 1. The Arts Mini Park at the intersection of South Buffalo Street and Franklin Street; 2. The Springville Brewery at Me-chanic Street and Franklin Street; 3. 31 East Main Street; 4. Lulubelle’s Gift Shop; 5. The Union Block Building; 6. The Carolsel Shop; 7. Metro Kirsch Real Estate; 8. Leslie Gibbon’s law office; 9. Spring Creek Mall at the intersection of Factory Street and East Main Street; 10. Heritage Park; 11.The area extending from Fiddler’s Green to Heritage Park; 12. The Public Library, at the intersection Fiddler’s Green and Franklin Street; 13. Lawrence’s Tavern, between South Buffalo Street and Academy Street; 14. Spray Park; 15. Slippy’s Collision, which by both by Franklin Street; 16. Village Optical, on Main Street..
The outdoor mural entitled “Before and Not Yet”, which is located at 38 Main Street, at the intersection of East Main Street and Mechanic Street was commissioned by the Albright Knox Public Art Initiative, and created by Bryan Metzdorf, an artist and commercial designer. Its title reflects his feelings of isolation during the height of the Covid crisis which prompted him to focus on places he’d been, where he’d admired various architectural elements, and places he was looking forward to seeing again. The various geometric forms in the mural complement various architectural elements and colors of buildings around Springville’s streets. In October of 2020, he stayed in Springville, and worked on the mural, for three weeks, in connection with Albright Knox’s visual arts residency program, and while at work, he collaborat-ed with staff from the Springville Center for the Arts, and students, as well as working on his own. While in Springville, he also created several studies and works, that were displayed at the Arts Cafe.
Another artist who created outdoor artwork in Springville is Alisia Glaser. She spent eleven weeks working on “Crow and Deer – Sweet Companionship”, the art that’s on the wall behind Leslie Gibbon’s law office. It’s romantic as well as beautiful, because it depicts a crow offering flowers to a deer with a happy expression, and hearts on either side of it. Fewer people have seen it than have seen the other exterior works of art because of its hidden location between buildings, but it’s well worth seeking out.
The art in the alleyway by Lulubelle’s Gift Shop features colorful, stylized rural elements as a tribute to Springville’s agricultural strengths, including a barn, an ear of corn, and the sun, with sunbeams of varying colors. In the Municipal Parking Lot located behind Main Street, you can see adorable, cartoon-like “Space Cats” doing dif-ferent things. All of the artwork adds a magical dimension to life in Springville.