Can Public Art Mend The Divide Between A Town And Its University?
“Ghost Shed” by Tom Friedman. Photo courtesy of the University Museum of Contemporary Art at UMass
From the middle of UMass toward the center of town in Amherst, Massachusetts, you may have seen some unexpected objects near walkways or up on a grassy hill.
Upon closer inspection, they’re delightful and puzzling pieces of art.
Sandy Litchfield, one of the curators of this outdoor multi-piece exhibit called Cross Town Contemporary Art, knows each piece.
Walking along North Pleasant Street, she pointed out a sculpture by artist Ben Jones.
It’s a fiberglass 3D map of a mountainous region, set atop uneven steel legs, completely gray except for three miniature billboards that repeat a message.
On one side, the billboards read, “All the time in the world.”
On the other side, they read, “Running out of time.”