As part of a 2019 initiative, in Spring 2023 partners Sampson Community College (SCC), the SCC Foundation, City of Clinton, and Sampson Arts Council agreed to install a community-selected, public art sculpture pad in SCC’s Sampson East Park off NC Hwy 24– serving as a welcoming gateway into Clinton. Narrowing the selection down to three works by internationally acclaimed sculptor, Hanna Jubran, the piece will be up for public vote until May 25.
In 2019, the City of Clinton adopted the Clinton Economic Development Strategic Plan with the assistance of a steering committee composed of community leaders and outstanding citizens: Lisa Turlington, Jaime Bonilla, Ric Bowen, Ed Carr, Jimmy Ezzell, Trey Fetterman, Dwight Horne, Jeff Nethercutt, Joyce Owen, Jeff Shipp, and Ken Sutton.
The strategic plan placed a strong emphasis on using public art as a tool to improve economic conditions within the community. According to Mary Rose, Planning and Community Development Director/Main Street Director, after discussion, research, and a visit to Downtown Goldsboro to see the public art, the committee agreed to a partnership between SCC, the Foundation, and the Sampson Arts Council to establish Clinton’s next public art installation on the College’s campus.
“Post-COVID, the City of Clinton is appreciative of the work SCC, the SCC Foundation, and Sampson Arts Council has done to implement one of our first Economic Development Plan goals,” voiced Rose on behalf of the City of Clinton. “The City recognizes the display of public art is not only an aesthetic benefit, but provides the opportunity to educate, inspire, reduce stress, increase tourism, increase property values and provide economic development opportunities within the City.”
Recently, the Public Art Initiative Committee narrowed the selection down to three pieces created by award-winning sculptor, Hanna Jubran for the public to vote on for the next art installation in Sampson County: Waterdrop, Midsummer, and Earth, Water, Fire, Wind.
Born in Israel, Jubran currently works as a Sculpture Professor and Sculpture Area Coordinator at East Carolina University in Greenville, N.C. Yielding a M.F.A. in sculpture from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, his pieces address the concepts of time, movement, balance, and space, while utilizing materials such as wood, granite, steel, iron, and bronze. Jubran regularly participates in international art shows, competitions, and symposiums, most recently reaching Argentina, Latvia, Germany, Finland, Canada, Cuba, Mexico, Israel, Lithuania, and Japan.
Lisa Turlington, Dean of Advancement at SCC, Executive Director of the SCC Foundation, and Chair of the steering committee, expressed, “It is exciting to see the continuation of local public art. I had the privileged of leading the Arts Council through the first initiative that led to Heidi Lippman’s Milling Around that has become an iconic image for downtown Clinton. We are thrilled that Sampson Community College will be the home of new temporary exhibitions that will add vibrancy to campus and will be highly visible to all who travel highway 24.”
Through this partnership, the City of Clinton seeks to strengthen its role as the facilitator for the display of art in the public spaces. In hopes of exhibiting various artists and their creations to the community, SCC will serve as a temporary site to the privately funded piece, which will be interchanged yearly.
To help select the next public art installation in Sampson County, visit https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/PublicArt. Voting is open to the public until Thursday, May 25 at 5PM.
About Sampson Community College
Sampson Community College is a member of the North Carolina Community College System, located in Clinton, NC in Sampson County. The college offers many programs to include two-year degrees, college transfer, continuing education and workforce development options and early college education. SCC is committed to the principles of equal educational and employment opportunities for all.
