photo by: Bremen Keasey

An art piece called Hanging In, Hanging Out created by local artist Alicia Kelly on the Vermont Street parking garage in downtown Lawrence. Kelly was one of nine artists selected to have her work featured in the city's Unmistakable Public Art Exhibition, which will officially open Sept. 26.

These rippling blue-and-white designs on the side of the Vermont Street parking garage aren’t just a new piece of public art — they’re an invitation to see things differently.

That’s what their creator, local artist Alicia Kelly, told the Journal-World. She imagines them as being from an “alternate dimension” — a “playful, meditative piece” whose patterns are reminiscent of “sitting under clouds, picking out their shapes.”

The City of Lawrence hopes it will get people meditating on something else, too: how public art goes beyond traditional sculptures and murals.

Kelly’s banners at 707 Vermont St., titled “Hanging In, Hanging Out,” are part of the city’s annual public art showcase, which is undergoing some rebranding this year. You might have known it before as the “Outdoor Downtown Sculpture Exhibition,” but it’s now called the “Unmistakable Public Art Exhibition.”

Porter Arneill, an assistant director with the Parks, Recreation and Culture department, said the city’s Cultural Arts Commission changed the name to reflect that public art is “an ever expanding field.”

Indeed, for some of the nine artists selected this year, “sculpture” isn’t a very good description of what they’re planning. One of the artists will be putting on a performance piece, Arneill said. Another will use paper pulp to “paint trees” in South Park or along Massachusetts Street.

photo by: City of Lawrence

Crews putting up an art installation Tuesday at the Vermont Street parking garage. The artist, Alicia Kelly pictured on the ground, is helping oversee the installation of the piece that is a part of the city’s Unmistakable Public Art Exhibition.

Kelly’s “Hanging In, Hanging Out” has some interesting properties of its own. Though the patterns on it are rooted in the natural world, the artwork is digitally printed on a synthetic, waterproof siding material called Tyvek, which Kelly has used for outdoor projects before because of how durable it is.

“It’s a magic material,” Kelly said.

Unlike a traditional mural, parts of the patterns are cut out by hand, Kelly said: “I imagine the banner and Tyvek pieces ‘quilted’ together by the same overall design, creating a feeling of nostalgia, intuition and the importance of the handmade.”

Beyond just giving the public an opportunity to appreciate local artists’ works, Arneill said, the exhibition also provides a professional development opportunity. He said that across the country, there are hundreds of opportunities each year to create public art, but that artists’ works are more likely to be selected by local governments if they’ve had public art pieces exhibited before. The development process for creating these pieces is often different from creating something for a studio setting, he said, and this local showcase gives artists a chance to see if they like the process.

“It’s a great opportunity for them to test the waters (of public art),” Arneill said.

Kelly, who is an instructor at The Lawrence Arts Center, said she has dabbled in the public art realm a few times, and the process is different compared to her other works. Normally, she works on paper and makes prints, but when she creates a public art piece, she has to think about logistics, placement and durability.

She also wants to ensure her designs can generate “open ended conversations” for viewers and make a statement in the space where they’ll be displayed.

“I strive to have my public works contrast with the urban landscape they live in while creating a sense of familiarity,” Kelly said. She hopes that “Hanging In, Hanging Out” will provide a “place of stillness” and comfort for those who see it.

The artworks for the Unmistakable Public Art Exhibition are currently being installed, but the exhibition won’t be “officially open” until Friday, Sept. 26, as part of the city’s Final Friday art walk programming. The pieces will be on display for a year, Arneill said.

photo by: City of Lawrence

City crews installing an art piece Tuesday called Hanging In, Hanging Out on the Vermont Street parking garage in downtown Lawrence.