The U.S. Department of State Art in Embassies has commissioned Workingman Collective to create a permanent artwork for the
grounds of the US Embassy in Monrovia, Liberia.
Our first site/research trip is March 2 -
15.
While in Monrovia we are planning a comprehensive survey + research of the Embassy grounds for location and installation of our artwork,
including: site conditions + regulations, lighting potential, foundation needs,
installation, suppliers, contacts, shipping, and etc.
Concurrently we will continue developing full conceptual/creative
research that will inform and enable us to provide the Arts and Embassy Program
a meaningful artwork that is specific as well as sensitive to the location for
which it is created.
We don't want to build a monolith here in the states, ship it to Monrovia, and bolt it to a concrete pad deep within the embassy grounds. We envision a project that has a life inside and outside the embassy grounds that connects community. Therefore, it is important while we are in Monrovia to explore, observe, and simply shake hands in the community involved with education, outreach, the arts and traditional crafts, and diplomacy.
We are also interested in cultural delivery systems such as the work Alfred J. Sirleaf is doing with his news kiosk, the Daily Talk, the Made In Liberia organization, the Checago Bright Foundation, or Leslie Lumeh who has created the first school of contemporary arts in Monrovia.
