Progress City - An Honors Thesis Exhibition
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The purpose of this project is to explore the way sculpture can visually represent history. Progress City is an art exhibition that focuses specifically on the time period during which America transitioned from an industrial to a service-based economy (1950s - 1970s) and the effects this departure had on cities throughout the Southeast. The exhibition comprises a series of twelve buildings with sides featuring screen printed images of actual abandoned and dilapidated structures. Each building reflects an industry or trade that was once considered vital to the growth of southern communities. These buildings are juxtaposed alongside a collection of found objects that have either a direct or indirect correlation to businesses that once occupied the actual structures. For example, a series of empty food packaging boxes from the 1950s are set alongside a structure featuring screen printed images of an abandoned market facade. By juxtaposing the found objects, now considered outdated, alongside a corresponding abandoned building, the viewer is able to see first-hand the effects progress has had on southern cityscapes.