News
December 5, 2008
City Council Votes To Place Sculpture In Millbrook Exchange Park
Following a recommendation from the City of Raleigh Arts Commission, the Raleigh City Council voted unanimously at its Dec. 2 meeting to place the “Immigrant Gate II” sculpture in Millbrook Exchange Park. Artist Jim Galluci created the sculpture.
Raleigh residents had 30 days to comment on the recommendation to the put the sculpture in Millbrook Exchange Park. Mr. Galluci and the City’s Parks, Recreation and Greenway Advisory Board both supported the recommendation.
“Immigrant Gate II,” first shown at Pier Walk in Chicago in 1997 and subsequently exhibited at various parks in the Midwest, first came to Raleigh as part of the 2003-2004 Downtown Raleigh Sculpture Expo. It was later purchased by the Arts Commission to become part of the City’s permanent art collection. Most recently, the sculpture was on exhibit across the street from the Progress Energy Center for the Performing Arts downtown. As a result of the opening of the Raleigh Convention Center, the sculpture’s relocation became necessary and the search for a permanent home for the art work sculpture was undertaken by the Arts Commission.
Last summer, the Arts Commission’s Public Art Committee surveyed three different locations for possible gate relocation. Given the kinetic nature of the piece, the members of the committee decided a public park was the most suitable site. Millbrook Exchange Park meets the Arts Commission’s various criteria for exhibiting the sculpture, including attractive surroundings, high visibility, and a setting that allows viewers to walk around the sculpture and interact with the artwork if they so desire. The site also addresses the Arts Commission’s goal to locate more artwork in City parks.
The “Immigrant Gate II” sculpture is 148 inches in height, 121 inches in width, and is comprised of welded steel and epoxy paint. The art is part of a series of gate works created by Mr. Gallucci. “This gate was designed in remembrance of my family coming to America, as Italian immigrants, in the 1930s,” he said. “America represented new challenges and a better future for their family. The design embodies the American ideal with the stars and waving stripes, and the symbolism is instantly recognizable to anyone in the world.”
Prepared by:
John Boyette
Public Affairs Specialist
Public Affairs Department
For More Information Contact:
June Guralnick
Arts Commission, Executive Director
City Manager Department
222 West Hargett Street, Room 504
Raleigh, NC 27601
919-996-4685
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