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Ten pianos painted by local artists, students and teachers will move from temporary public locations to permanent homes in Newport News this week as part of a public arts project, Sing for Hope.
“For us, it's really a way of making arts accessible to all and to be able to foster that appreciation for the arts across a very diverse group of people,” said Joanne Palmeira, Superintendent of Cultural Arts for Newport News. “You know, music really is a universal language.”
The city partnered with the Ferguson Center for the Arts and the Mary M. Torggler Fine Arts Center at Christopher Newport for the project. Artists worked on their pianos for several weeks and presented them at a special reception in March before the pianos were placed around the city.
Local artist Terry Cox-Joseph painted "Mozart's Safari," which will live at Saunders Elementary School.
Menchville High School junior Amy Queen designed a yellow piano dedicated to Martin Luther King Jr. that went to Patrick Henry Mall. Artist Terry Cox-Joseph created “Mozart’s Safari,” with animals resting, eating and playing in the savannah that went to the Mariner’s Museum. And Christopher Newport University student Candyce Harrell created a Van Gogh inspired design for their piano that went to the college’s campus.
“Each artist that came and worked with Torggler Center gave up so much of their time to create their pianos [and] each have a unique story,” said Bruce Bronstein, Executive Director of the Ferguson Center for the Arts.
“Each piece resonates in a different way. I would find in the process of them creating their pianos, my favorites would change. … There's such a wide variety of talent and ideas going across.”
Children play on the "Sea of Color" piano during the opening event at the Ferguson Center for the Arts in March. The piano will go to the Courthouse Way Community Center after April 18.
Once in the community, the pianos are meant to be played by passers-by, even if they’ve never played before.
“When you hit a note on a piano and it makes music, there's something special that happens,” Bronstein said.
“We've seen it even in the short time that the pianos have been out in the public. The arts build community, strangers talk to each other when they're standing around watching a performance.”
The pianos will move to permanent locations in the city after April 18, primarily to schools and community centers.
All photos by Zach D. Roberts
