Artwork Dedication at Benjamin Branch Library

GREENSBORO, NC (April 21, 2010) -- Greensboro Public Library is proud to announce the dedication of a new artwork at the Blanche S. Benjamin Branch, 1530 Benjamin Parkway, on Friday, April 30, from 6:30-7:30 pm. The work, a series of six overhead mobiles titled “Fictions,” is the brainchild of artist David Finn, who accomplished the work with the help of four of his Wake Forest University students.

The mobiles are situated in the clerestory atrium of the Benjamin Branch Library, which was designed in 1975 by Greensboro architect Edward Lowenstein, and was renovated in 2009. The mobiles were part of the renovation plan that added a wing to the building and restored the clerestory windows. Teague, Freyaldenhoven and Freyaldenhoven were the architects for the project.

The work was commissioned by the Greensboro Public Library Art Commission. To meet the challenges of the 200 pound weight limit, the mobiles were fabricated using ultra light carbon fiber rods and spunbonded olefin fiber made by Dupont, known as Tyvek.  The brightly painted Tyvek structures rest on bearings that allow them to rotate in the ambient air of the clerestory.

To help him design and paint the 6 mobiles, Finn looked to his most promising students in the Wake Forest University Art Department. “I wanted to make each of the mobiles tell a story- a fiction- and I thought the best way to do that would be to have a different artist work on each one.”

Katie Shuford (‘09), Kathren Bowman (‘10), Rebecca Bowers (’10) each contributed distinctive works to the ensemble. Rachel Fedders (’11) created two pieces, and worked on paint research for the project. She received a Wake Forest Research and Creative Activities grant to work on the project.

The public is invited to see the mobiles and hear Professor Finn and his students talk about the work. Refreshments will be served and the event is open to the public. For more information on the mobile please contact David Finn at 336-758-5077.