FREE BIKE TOURS OF FOUR NEW PUBLIC ART PROJECTS IN HARTFORD

Thursday, June 18, 6 PM
starting from Real Art Ways' Parking Lot

Hartford, Connecticut – Real Art Ways will offer a free, early evening bike tour of four new works of public art in Hartford’s Parkville and Frog Hollow neighborhoods on Thursday, June 18 at 6 PM. The four projects – created specifically for Hartford by artists Margarida Correia, Satch Hoyt, Sofia Maldonado, and Matthew Rodriguez – make use of the existing creativity, vibrancy, and culture of the Parkville and Frog Hollow neighborhoods. Real Art Ways is located at 56 Arbor Street in Parkville.

All bike tourists will get discounted admission to the Thursday, June 18th Creative Cocktail Hour: $5 for non-members, and free for Real Art Ways members. Creative Cocktail Hour is a gathering of people for art, music, and each other on the third Thursday of each month from 6 – 10 PM.

About the Projects
Photographer Margarida Correia has been working with members of Hartford’s Portuguese community. A Parkville billboard displays the Praia da Nazaré, Portugal's famous beach. Street lamp banners on Park Street display album covers of famous Fado singers. Stores along Parkville play music from the albums.

Satch Hoyt created a labyrinth in Frog Hollow's Pope Park. The labyrinth, constructed from clotheslines, addresses the migratory voyage of the residents who reside in the neighborhood. The public is invited to traverse the labyrinth's path.

Sofia Maldonado's mural, on the Pelican Tattoo building in Frog Hollow, blends elements of female aesthetics and street cultures. Maldonado worked with two interns to create the project, including a neighborhood teenager from Mi Casa.

Matthew Rodriguez has created faces on 77 trees in Pope Park. The playful characters, painted onto the trees, look out onto Hamilton Avenue. The trees were painted with the help of volunteers from the neighborhood.

Other Ways to See the Projects
In addition to the bike and bus tours offered at the opening on Saturday, May 30, and the bike tour on Thursday, June 18, Self-guided tours, narrated by the artists, are available for free by cell phone: 860-760-9979. Free project maps are available at Real Art Ways, or online: realartways.org/visualarts.htm.

Past Public Art Projects
Real Art Ways’ history of commissioning, organizing, and presenting public art projects exhibits the organization’s commitment to community and to excellent, innovative art. Since 1990, Real Art Ways has originated, commissioned and produced 27 public art projects. Past participants in our public art program include: Rachel Berwick, Mel Chin, Karin Giusti, Lillian Hsu-Flanders, Liz Miller, Pepón Osorio, Robert Peters, Carl Pope, Iñigo Manglano-Ovalle, James Luna, Jessica Diamond, Danny Tisdale, Steed Taylor, Harrell Fletcher, Verandah Porche, Pruitt.Early, and Ellen Driscoll, and others.

Support
Major support for Real Public comes from the Institute of Museum and Library Services, the Connecticut Commission on Culture and Tourism, the Edward C. and Ann T. Roberts Foundation, Westside Properties Inc., The Ensworth Charitable Trust, The Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts, The Hartford Foundation for Public Giving, The Greater Hartford Arts Council's United Art Campaign, The J. Walton Bissell Foundation, National Performance Network – Visual Artists Network, Sandy and Howard Fromson, Travelers, Robinson and Nancy Grover, The Wallace Foundation, and Real Art Ways' Members.

Major support for Real Art Ways’ visual arts programs comes from Real Art Ways members, Howard & Sandy Fromson, Greater Hartford Arts Council’s United Arts Campaign, Connecticut Commission on Culture and Tourism, Hartford Foundation for Public Giving, the Institute of Museum and Library Services, the Wallace Foundation, the Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts, the Edward C. and Ann T. Roberts Foundation, Travelers, Robinson and Nancy Grover, and Gary E. West.


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