The Lewes Public Art Committee held a meeting April 27 to consider the proposal of Art in Bloom to install a sculpture called Cape Spirit in Canalfront Park.
While the committee members all claimed to love the sculpture, some were clearly against its proposed location near the pergola or anywhere else in the park. While reasonable people can disagree about the value of Cape Spirit to Canalfront Park, the committee hearing, led by Chair Cliff Diver, instead degenerated into acrimony and nonsense.
Mr. Diver was dismissive and insulting throughout. He asked for a detailed timeline for installation of the sculpture. When AIB responded by saying they cannot yet provide a timeline because they cannot be sure how long fundraising will take, Mr. Diver agreed the question is almost impossible to answer at this point. Then he criticized AIB for not answering it in their proposal.
Mr. Diver referred to the proposal as a “mess,” and he and other critics of the proposal spoke of Cape Spirit as if it would be some sort of public danger and nuisance.
After all, nighttime drunks might climb it and hurt themselves, the marine-grade stainless steel would need to be cleaned more often than AIB expected (my goodness!), it will weigh more than the engineering firm that will build it has stated, and someone might paint graffiti on it. Mr. Diver even criticized AIB for not having a formal contract with the sculptor, even though the project is not yet approved or funded. He also said that AIB expects the city to pay some upfront costs for later payback by AIB. That one was just crazy; Cape Spirit will be funded by grants and donations. Throughout the meeting, Mr. Diver suppressed AIB’s ability to respond to PAC’s questions and assertions.
The PAC is correct to pay careful attention to any proposal for permanent installation, and the opposition of some members to the proposed location of Cape Spirit is defensible. However, these concerns were overwhelmed by the antagonistic way that Mr. Diver treated AIB’s heartfelt effort to build something beautiful for Lewes.
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