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After weeks of heated debate among elected leaders and members of the community, Greenville County Council members refused Tuesday to award a $7,500 grant to promote the Wings of the City sculpture exhibit.
The decision came after several speakers at Tuesday s meeting offered starkly contrasting assessments of the nine bronze sculptures by acclaimed Mexican artist Jorge MarÍn that were placed in Falls Park and the Peace Center in April. Their comments met with both applause and jeers from different groups in the council chambers at County Square.
Carolyn Watson, a retired art history professor at Furman University, described one of the sculptures as an avatar of a bloodthirsty deity.
After complaints by some Greenville County residents about the new sculptures downtown, the county s finance committee voted 4-1 to re-allocate funds earmarked for the Hispanic Alliance. The Hispanic Alliance worked with the City of Greenville and fundraised through private sponsors to bring the temporary exhibit to downtown through October.The nine sculptures - six in Falls Park, two outside the Peace Center and one inside - were created by Mexican artist Jorge Marín. Many depict a male figure with wings. Some of the figures wear masquerade-style face coverings. The bodies are not wearing clothing. Only one of the pieces shows any graphic depiction of genitalia. That particular sculpture is inside the Peace Center, with the front of the male figure facing away from the street view. Petitions both for and against the sculptures sprang up on the internet, as did social media posts involving the naked men in masks and wings, as well as the giant wings in Falls Park.The City of
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Despite a series of last-minute concessions offered by a landowner and homebuilding company, Greenville County Council members refused Tuesday to approve a rezoning request for a 428-home subdivision on Old Grove Road.
As a result of the council s 7-5 vote, the 152-acre tract near Grove Elementary School will have to go through the rezoning process again, and that could take months.
In an effort to get the rezoning for the Grant Park subdivision approved, landowner Phil Hughes offered to set aside 17 acres of the property for up to 100 affordably priced homes. Meritage Homes also agreed to pay $482,000 for road improvements and sidewalks, as well as make a $200,000 donation to the community.