Farmington City Council mulling possible purchase of downtown sculpture

Members of the Farmington City Council agreed during their Dec. 12 meeting to ask the city staff to conduct a survey measuring public attitudes toward a downtown public sculpture program and the possibility of the city purchasing some of the work.

The possibility of the city buying some of the sculptures included in the “Art in the Heart” public exhibition was floated by deputy city manager Julie Baird during her presentation to the council on the program. The juried exhibition was launched in May, with nine pieces being displayed throughout the downtown district as one of the finishing touches in the city’s $12 million Complete Streets renovation of the area.

The works will remain in place until April, when they will be removed to make room for a new crop of sculptures, Baird said. The pieces were not purchased by the city — rather, they were on loan from the artists who created them with the idea that the public exposure the city was providing might encourage some buyers to emerge. If that were to happen, the city would handle the transaction and retain a 25% commission, Karen Lupton, economic development specialist for the city and Main Street coordinator, has said.

Baird said she had spoken to Lupton, Farmington's economic development director Warren Unsicker and members of a committee that helped launch the program about the pieces included in the exhibition, and three of the works seemed to have drawn the most attention — a hummingbird sculpture by David Hickman called “Savor the Moment,” a horned frog sculpture by D’Jean Jawrunner called “Sun Lion” and a sculpture of three women by Shohini Ghosh called “Chat.”

Baird then asked for direction from councilors about whether they wanted to pursue the purchase of any of the three sculptures. She noted that the program was not launched with the idea that the city would commit to buying any of the work, but it is an option some city officials were willing to consider.

In response to a question from Councilor Linda Rodgers, Baird said the city would have many options for finding a permanent home for any sculpture it purchased from the exhibition. The work could remain downtown, it could be placed before City Hall or the Farmington Civic Center, or it could be relocated to the city’s planned Gateway Park adjacent to the Farmington Museum when that project is completed, she said.

Mayor Nate Duckett spoke in favor of the program and of the possibility of the city acquiring some of the work.

“The feedback I’ve received on these has been extremely positive,” he said, adding that the city has numerous opportunities to expand the program beyond downtown in the future.

Duckett said he was impressed with the public sculptures he encountered in downtown Artesia during a recent visit to that community.

“Those things lend, in my opinion, to how we perceive the place that we live,” he said, adding that he thinks it would be worth the council’s time to consider the option of purchasing some of the work. “In my opinion, we do need more art in our parks.”

Councilor Sean Sharer acknowledged the beauty of the sculptures and said they had livened up downtown. But he said he had reservations about the purchase of the work.

“My only concern is, they’re not inexpensive,” he said, adding that he wasn’t sure that spending taxpayer money on public art was the best use of those funds.

“I love the project,” Sharer said. “It adds to the community, but I personally don’t think I would be in favor of purchasing any art at the moment.”

The city would be entitled to a 25% discount on the listed price of any of the works, Baird said, noting that savings would represent its commission from the sale of the piece. The “Sun Lion” piece was listed at $35,000, or $26,250 to the city; “Chat” was listed at $15,000, or $11,250 to the city; and “Save the Moment” was listed at $33,250, or $24,937.50 to the city.

The council ended the discussion by reaching a consensus to send the issue back to the staff, which will be directed to survey members of the public about whether they are in favor of the city purchasing any of the pieces and, if so, which one or ones they prefer.

Mike Easterling can be reached at 505-564-4610 or measterling@daily-times.com. Support local journalism with a digital subscription: http://bit.ly/2I6TU0e.

This article originally appeared on Farmington Daily Times: Farmington residents will be polled about city buying artwork