Brancroft Elementary Banner Series

The Bemis Center's Art 4 Omaha Project 3:

As people travel along 10th Street this month, they will be greeted by a happy elephant wearing a tutu and tiara. She’s not the latest addition to the zoo, but she is a colorful new addition to one of Omaha’s busiest traffic corridors. The Bemis Center for Contemporary Arts is extremely pleased to announce the latest in the Art 4 Omaha Project 3 Bancroft Elementary Banner Series. This five-part project has been taking place throughout the 2005–2006 school year, with Bancroft Elementary students taking an active role in designing and making the art featured on project sponsor Bill Seidler, Jr.'s community visual arts facility, formerly Bob’s Grocery Store, on the South West corner of 10th and Bancroft Streets. The Bemis Center is working closely with Bancroft’s art instructor Dave Manriquez in creating the original artwork for this community-based public art project.

With these images, Art 4 Omaha Project 3 is creating art not just for Omaha, but also about Omaha. The Bancroft Elementary Banner Series features artwork specifically about the Deer Park and Dahlman Neighborhoods, a focus that creates excitement and anticipation for the students as they create images to coincide with some of their neighborhood’s major events. Art 4 Omaha Project 3 has included making botanical banners that coincided with the Lauritzen Gardens Antique & Garden Show in late September and will design Cinco de Mayo banners for the May 5th celebration and baseball themes celebrating the annual College World Series. Natalie Linstrom, the Community Arts Coordinator for the Bemis Center, says: “This project provides Bancroft students with a public venue to display their pride and ownership in their school and community. By directly making the art and having a say in which art will be in their neighborhood, they have a ‘visual voice,’ a way to show the public what their world looks like. Very few collective activities instill a greater sense of pride in a community than a large-scale art project like this. I am excited to be a part of this and to see how the students develop their Art 4 Omaha project throughout the entire school year.”

Art 4 Omaha Project 3 sponsor Bill Seidler, Jr. observes: “The intersection of 10th and Bancroft is the crossroads for major attractions in Omaha. The art murals show the connection the neighborhood has to the Botanical Gardens, the zoo, the stadium, Sokol Auditorium and the Old Market...It will help show visitors that art is important to the people of Omaha and that we are a dynamic and vibrant city.” Adds Seidler: “If you have not been to the intersection of 10th and Bancroft, I encourage you to take a walk through this vibrant neighborhood.”

The Bemis Center’s Art 4 Omaha Project 3 follows the successful completion of its Art 4 Omaha Project 1, the Artist-in-Industry Steel Collaboration Project, and Art 4 Omaha Project 2, Omaha’s Cultural Quilt, both installed at Qwest Omaha earlier this year. The Bemis Center created the Art 4 Omaha initiative to raise public arts awareness by collaborating with community members in the creation of spectacular artwork for display in prominent locations. By directly involving the community with creating public art, the Art 4 Omaha projects have significant civic impact, both culturally and educationally. The close involvement in the creative process enables people to take a leading role in the art that enlivens Omaha’s cityscape, which in turn creates a sense of personal ownership in the contemporary arts culture of our city. For more information about the Bemis Center’s Art 4 Omaha projects, or to become an Art 4 Omaha volunteer, donor or sponsor, please call Natalie Linstrom at 402.341.7130 x 25 or email: natalie@bemiscenter.org

Art 4 Omaha Project 3: Bancroft Elementary Banners