The Newport Art Museum (NAM) unveiled a new exterior place marker today at a celebratory event to thank the Board of Trustees, members, donors, and public partners who helped make the project possible.
The Steel Yard Public Projects, a Providence-based metal art shop, created the work of art. The Van Beuren Charitable Foundation provided funding, with additional support from the Sand Foundation and John G. Horton and Rebecca Rex from the NAM Board of Trustees.
“I want to express our deepest gratitude for the generous philanthropic support that made this vision a reality. Thanks to these champions for the arts and our talented partners at The Steel Yard, our new exterior place marker improves the visitor experience, more clearly communicates our location, and illustrates that our beautiful campus is accessible to all,” said Executive Director Danielle Ogden in a statement provided to What’sUpNewp.
To make the piece, artists Amber and Corey Orlando-Dauphinee from The Steel Yard rolled the base to match the unique curvature of NAM’s rock wall and then painstakingly placed and drilled all the letters.
“The design is intended to look like the letters float above the rock wall. It takes skill to make something look that effortless,” said Ti Dinh, client relations manager at The Steel Yard.
In addition to key funders, NAM expressed gratitude to the city officials, including the Planning and Economic Development Department, the Department of Zoning, and the Newport Historic District Commission, who helped navigate and oversee the project.
