“ArtPrize 2020 canceled”
This was the subject line of an email that we had been praying not receive. But despite assurances from the event organizers, COVID-19 once again won out and they were forced to cancel it all.
For months, we’d been preparing our most ambitious project yet, a monumental creation that we hoped to debut at ArtPrize 2020, a city-wide celebration of art taking place in Grand Rapids, Michigan, just 40 minutes from our home. This event draws HALF A MILLION visitors and awards $250,000 in cash prizes! And now, it was canceled.
This was going to be our big reveal! A culmination of months of planning and sweat and investment dashed with a single email subject line. Well folks, in times like these, it is more important than ever to be flexible and go with the flow. To change course when the river runs dry. To shapeshift.
So we’re going to finish this project bygolly and before we do, we thought we’d let you in on THE PLAN…
As you probably know, for the past 8 years, I’ve created a 2D mixed media series called The Jobs of Yesteryear in which I’ve researched and fully engrossed myself into the world of workers of the past, the work they did, and how that work has changed over time. In 2018 Ashley and I decided this idea was a perfect candidate for public art and we launched The Jobs Project.
Initially designed as a public mural project to honor the workers of the world, we have expanded The Jobs Project to include 3D public art and create metal and wood sculptures using manmade wood elements and old metal tools. We piece together these relics to depict humble workers in a larger-than-life form. I see every job as serving an important purpose in the greater good. By creating large scale public art projects depicting these jobs with my distinctly long-limbed figures, I hope to make these workers feel larger-than-life and highlight the important roles that they serve in their community.
By far, the most popular worker among my collectors and followers has been The Lamplighter. It is a personal favorite and was the very first worker I painted in 2011. Since then I’ve depicted it in 9 different compositions. The story behind it harks back to the days before the widespread use of electricity, when streets of most towns and cities were lit by gas lamps. These lamps had to be lit as dusk turned to darkness and extinguished as the day’s light filled the morning sky. The Lamplighter was responsible for these tasks and typically employed either a long pole, ladder or tall customized bicycle to reach the lamp to light it.
The Original Lamplighter Painting
The Latest Lamplighter Painting
Our plan is to create a towering Lamplighter sculpture composed of tools and remnants of workers of the past. Log-driving pikes, antiquated farm tools, discarded machines rendered obsolete by innovation: these relics of workers past will be repurposed in a our grand gesture of gratitude for the work they’ve done. And we’re already well on our way!
The Lamplighter will be atop a tall bike and lighting a lamp. Encircling The Lamplighter will be stationary bikes and hand cranks. Viewers, art enthusiasts, children, and everyone from the community will be invited to pedal the bikes in order to create electricity and light. As they pedal, three lights will be illuminated: one form the headlight of each bike to light up the sculpture, one in the street lamp that The Lamplighter is lighting and on inside the chest of The Lamplighter figure, a nod to the light that we all carry within us and that is often shared through the work we do. The idea is to highlight the important role the viewer and their work serves in their community, and how we all must work together to create light. The illumination will be visible during the day and will be absolutely stunning after the sun goes down.
The Lamplighter Sculpture Concept Drawing
The Lamplighter Sculpture Concept Drawing with Bikes and Lights
So there you have it: a GIANT LAMPLIGHTER SCULPTURE! We’re so excited to see this project through to the end and really feel that it will open up the ways in which we can honor workers through our art. But we could use your help! Since ArtPrize and our big reveal was canceled, we need a place to show this sculpture. If you know of any public venues, festivals, events, etc. that would be a good fit, send us a message to let us know! Preferably, the venue would be in the vicinity of our Michigan home, as this will be our first trial run and installation. Together, we can bring this sculpture to life and share our light!
Email: howdy@tylervoorheesart.com
Facebook: Tyler Voorhees Art
Instagram: Tyler Voorhees Art
In honor of this ambitious undertaking, I’ve released my latest Lamplighter IX in a 12x24 inch wood box panel print. You can shop for it HERE.