Chapel Hill to bring art to crosswalks

Tired of plain white lines? Then get ready — some of Chapel Hill’s crosswalks are about to get artsy.

Chapel Hill’s Public and Cultural Arts Office sent out a request earlier this year for artists to submit proposals to revamp five crosswalks in town. While the crosswalks’ stop bars — the white parallel lines — had to remain intact, any colors or designs within those lines were fair game. 

Design specifications included a design with high-visibility and a desire for a limited color palette for the transfer of the art onto a stencil. The designs also needed a theme or connection to Chapel Hill or UNC.

Jeff York, the public and cultural arts administrator for Chapel Hill, said artist-designed crosswalks were not a new idea and that communities had been doing similar projects for years. He said he wanted to address Chapel Hill as town of forward-thinking individuals with interest in the arts.

Crosswalks where the designs will be featured include all four crosswalks at the intersections of Rosemary and Church Streets, Cameron Avenue/Country Club Road and Raleigh Street, as well as a single crosswalk in front of Shortbread Lofts.

The proposal for designs was opened up to artists in five counties — Alamance, Chatham, Durham, Orange and Wake. A total of 31 applications were received. 

A committee selected the final designs with representation including professors of art history and visual art at UNC, the Chapel Hill Public Arts Commission, the Chapel Hill Bicycle and Pedestrian Safety and Education Board and the town’s Traffic Engineering Division, among many others. 

Meg McGurk, the executive director of the Chapel Hill Downtown Partnership, served on the committee.

“I think that anytime we can incorporate interesting, dynamic public art downtown is a fantastic idea,” she said.

McGurk said she was impressed by the design applications and called it a difficult decision to narrow them down. She said she thought the project would bring something bright and dynamic to Chapel Hill with the artist-designed crosswalks acting as a visual stimulus for the town.

Promoting art is not the only goal of the project.

“The artist-designed crosswalk illustrates how an issue like safety can also be art,” York said.

Both McGurk and York agreed the crosswalks could further safety in the town.

“Anytime you use a color, it is more noticeable,” York said. “Even some of the new standards are using red for crosswalks instead of white.”

The artists who had their designs selected also benefited from the project. The winners received a $1,500 honorarium for their design. 

Amy S. Hoppe, a Raleigh-based artist, is one of the artists who will have their designs featured on the crosswalks. She said she was excited to bring a celebratory spirit to something as simple as crossing the street. Her design features a detail observed during her walks in downtown Chapel Hill and on UNC's campus — the bricks. 

“Brick features prominently on Franklin Street, framing institutions like Sutton’s Drug Stores and in newer construction like at 140 West Franklin, near where my design will be stenciled at Church and Rosemary," Hoppe said in an email. "There’s also the beautiful brick walkways on campus that highlight the University’s history.” 

York said the first artist-designed crosswalk would likely not appear until mid to late spring next year due to repaving. He said a designed crosswalk could possibly be created earlier on UNC's campus. 

The project is only planned for Chapel Hill crosswalks, with these five crosswalks serving as pilot projects. York said the art should be able to last two to three years before wearing. 

city@dailytarheel.com