The city of East Lansing is showcasing the work of several local artists in an outdoor exhibit downtown. The displays are part of East Lansing’s ongoing placemaking initiatives.
For the next three months, eight local artists will have their work highlighted on rotating art panels underneath the Division Street garage.
Wendy Sylvester-Rowan, East Lansing’s placemaking & arts programming specialist, says the artists were selected because their work celebrates the city’s diversity.
“We were hoping to embody the character of East Lansing and the sense of community that is celebrated downtown,” she added.
The eight artists selected are Jon Casey, Karla Forrest-Hewitt, Jacqui Carroll, Kelly Hansen, Aaron Schubert, Amber Prass, Sophie Rutkowski and Tamara Brown.
“The artwork really is a jolt of color and makes people stop in their tracks and look at this wonderful artwork by local artists and, you know, artwork that the Broad has as well,” Sylvester-Rowan said.
In a press release, Downtown Development Authority Vice Chair Luke Allen said he can’t wait to add more art to downtown.
“This is another wonderful opportunity for the community to come downtown and support these local artists,” he said.
The rotating art panels were first introduced during the pandemic as part of a plan to attract more visitors and support small businesses in the area. Since then, several rotating art exhibitions have been featured in the space including reproductions of artwork from the MSU Broad Art Museum’s permanent collection and artwork by local high school AP Art students.
