Sheyenne Street comes to life with public art installations

By City of West Fargo

In its first full year of implementing the Public Arts Advisory Committee to focus on increasing public art in West Fargo, the City of West Fargo has introduced five pieces of public art on Sheyenne Street.

Working with The Arts Partnership’s Blank Spaces program the City arranged for four traffic light utility boxes, which hold all of the electronic equipment that make our traffic lights operate, to be wrapped in artwork. These boxes provide large blank canvases in highly visible areas.

The Blank Spaces program is a collection of pieces from local artists that can be used to bring art into empty public spaces throughout the metro area. The City of West Fargo held a public vote to select the four pieces that ended up in locations on Sheyenne Street.

“Beehive” by Hannah Stelter, “Horses at Sunset” by Anna Lassond and “Shane” by Nancy Ness can all be found in The Downtown Yards on Sheyenne district, and “Dilophosaurus with Pizza” by Hope Their can be found near The Lights on Sheyenne. The art was printed on vinyl, and is weather and graffiti proof. The pieces are estimated to stay in place for five to seven years.

Another exciting artistic addition to The Downtown Yards is “Astral” by local sculptor, Karman Rheault of Snowfire Studio. This sculpture will be in downtown through fall 2022, and utilizes one of the bump-out spaces added during the Sheyenne Street reconstruction project. In the words of the artist, “Astral depicts both feminine and masculine ethereal figures reaching up and joining at the sun, but grounded by the earth. It symbolizes nature, spirit, balance and connection.”

“Public art brings the community together, and adds excitement and interest to our public spaces,” said City Planner Malachi Petersen. “The West Fargo 2.0 Comprehensive Plan emphasized the importance of bringing more public art to West Fargo, and we hope that these Sheyenne Street projects are just the first of many installations throughout our city.”

Residents are encouraged to interact with the art and take photos with the pieces, tagging @CityofWestFargo on Facebook and @downtownwestfargo on Instagram.

The projects were reviewed by the Public Art Advisory Committee, who is tasked with reviewing and recommending public art installations and performances on cityowned public property. The Committee also seeks ways to engage the West Fargo community to improve the quality of life for the City’s residents through the promotion of public art.

Do you have a great idea for a public art installation? Learn more, and contact the Public Art Advisory Committee at https:// www.westfargond.gov/359/BoardsCommissions.