E Pluribus Unum (Fred Wilson)
Artist's rendering of E Pluribus Unum above
an image of the freed slave on the Soldiers' and Sailors' Monument.
Indy's Soldiers' and Sailors' Monument is one of the largest in the
country standing 284 feet-6 inches. The freed slave is about 15 feet
tall.
Wilson's engagement with Indianapolis dates to 1993, when he created a show entitled "The Spiral of Art History" at the Indianapolis Museum of Art. This exhibition brought Wilson into contact with the city's vast collection of war memorials (second only to Washington, D.C.). When Wilson was approached about a commission for the Cultural Trail, he recalled that only one downtown monument included a representation of a person of color: the Soldiers' and Sailors' Monument that sits at the heart of the city. The figure on that monument -- an African-American man -- is forever frozen in time as a freed slave sitting half-clothed on the ground with his hands raised up with broken shackles. In 2010, this figure is still the only monumental representation of African-Americans visible to the hundreds of thousands of visitors and residents in downtown Indianapolis.
Wilson has titled his overall project E Pluribus Unum (Out of Many, One). he has digitally scanned the sculpture of the freed slave in 3-D. He proposes to recreate him in Indiana limestone and to present him in the City-County Building's prominent front plaza in an upright, empowered position as a 21st century person of color. Instead of clenching his fist around shackles, the slave will be holding a flag of Wilson's design representing the African Diaspora.
Significantly, this is the first time in Wilson's career that he will be "mining" the public monuments of a city and creating a new permanent public monument. This will also be the first public artwork dedicated to the African-American community in Indianapolis' downtown "monument" collection.
While Wilson has envisioned the physical manifestation of the project, his concept still requires extensive research and community outreach to learn about the African-American experience in our city and state. This is a critical part of Wilson's artistic practice and an important lasting impact of his art. A series of community presentations and "Q & A" with Wilson, outreach events at the Indianapolis Museum of Art, and various research projects for students are being planned. Please visit the "Get Involved" page here for more information.
Wilson's project is scheduled for completion with a community unveiling on September 22, 2011
