2020 IGAP SUBMISSION - MLK BENCH
Our 2020 Inglewood Growing Artists Projects (IGAP) submission for the City of Inglewood’s public art commission showcased the power of building a movement using the words of Dr. Martin Luther King. Created for Inglewood’s annual MLK street fair, AERO’s IGAP submission serves as an intervention in the public sphere. Taking the form of street furniture, the intervention looks to create ten powder-coated steel seats with quotes from Dr. King inscribed into them. The quotes focus on the power individuals have when they come together to work towards bettering the greater good. The seats are arranged into four unique groupings, each located on a different block of Market Street clustered around the mid-block pedestrian crossings.
Group #1 located at the southernmost block of Market Street features the quote: “We cannot walk alone.”
Group #2, located one block north of group #1, consists of two seats featuring the original quote from group #1 on one seat and the quote, “An individual has not started living until he can rise above the narrow confines of his individualistic concerns to the broader concerns of all humanity,” on the second seat.
Group #3 is located one block north of group #2 and consists of three seats featuring the quotes from group #2 on two seats and the quote: “If you can’t fly then run, if you can’t run then walk, if you can’t walk then crawl, but whatever you do you have to keep moving forward” on the third seat.
Group #4 is located one block north of group #3 and consists of four seats featuring the quotes from group #3 on three seats and the quote: “We may all come on different ships, but we’re in the same boat now” on the fourth seat.
The seats will physically sort people into different size groups. While the quotes will challenge them to contemplate the power of individuals coming together to form movements that work towards a single goa,the seats will also highlight Dr. King’s ability to spread ideas through powerful speeches.
Our submission was named the alternate to the winning submission.