Organizers of St. Albert’s first street piano project are seeking ideas from local artists.
The event, entitled Keys for the City, will be a star attraction at the 2013 StArts Fest in September, said organizer Nancy Watt of the St. Albert Cultivates the Arts Society.
The project works like this: Don Vaugeois of Don’s Piano Showroom will donate anywhere from one to three old pianos. Visual artists will then paint and decorate them. During the arts festivities, the musical instruments will be placed in pedestrian-friendly locations throughout the city, where nimble professionals and any member of the public will be able to tickle the ivories.
The event is aimed at increasing the visibility of arts and culture and taking music out to the people.
“When the festival ends, we plan to store (the pianos),” Watt said. “Next year, we’ll get three more and the following year another three. Hopefully over the years we can build a collection.”
Interested St. Albert visual artists are asked to tender submissions. Proposals should include project goals, artistic merit and resources required to provide care and access. Artists are free to choose a theme and personalize it in an imaginative manner. However the visual imagery must be family appropriate. In return, artists will receive $500 plus a $100 paint and material allowance.
Watt noted that numerous materials other than paint can be used – mosaics, mirrors or even papier mâché.
“It’s pretty wide open.”
Watt first heard of the idea when Toronto displayed 41 pianos during the Pan American Games, one representing each participating country.
One day over lunch with Watt, Vaugeois lamented that he had some old beaters piling up and wasn’t quite sure what to do with them. By the time lunch was over, Keys for the City was well into the planning stages.
Watt added, “You can put a piano outside for a few days. We’ll construct tarps should a shower come through. We want to put them in places where they can be sheltered overnight. The idea is to have people come and admire the artwork and play the piano.”
Watt feels that St. Albert, with its large variety of public spaces, beckons such a project. She listed off a series of places she’d like to provide as a nesting spot for pianos – St. Albert Place, St. Albert Centre, the botanic park, Red Willow Park, the grain elevators, Lions Park, the Children’s Bridge and the list goes on.
“It really invites the public to be part of it. So many people are curious about the piano and it is there to try. Hopefully it will bring musicians out of the woodwork. What could be better?”
Submissions close Sunday, June 30. Complete information for submissions is available at www.startsfest.ca.
