Alamance Arts Works With Elon Students to Update Public Art Guide

Elon University students have spent eight weeks overhauling public art guides for Alamance County, working alongside local arts leaders to bring decades-old documentation into the digital age.

The countywide initiative addresses a growing need identified by associate professor David McGraw’s Arts Administration senior seminar class, who discovered that existing guides dated back seven or eight years and featured outdated information, as the Elon News Network reported.

The student-led project culminated in a presentation on Nov. 10 at Gray Pavilion, where members of the class shared their new brochures, QR codes, and implementation plans with the Alamance Arts board.

“We checked in with Alamance Arts periodically throughout the process, just to make sure that we were on track,” senior Noah Macam told the Elon News Network, noting that the group wanted to help local residents engage with and support public art.

Students divided the countywide project into sections based on individual interests, going out into Burlington and the surrounding community to experience standing art firsthand. Senior Ansley Massanelli followed existing guides around Burlington to map out the terrain.

“I got to experience parts of Burlington and Alamance County that she never had before and felt more engaged with her community after getting to see areas she otherwise would have just driven past,” Massanelli told the Elon News Network.

Alamance Arts Executive Director Chris Williams and Associate Director Kim Williard listened as the senior seminar class presented their resources. Williams praised the collaborative effort.

“I’m just very, very proud of the work they’ve done and the collaborative spirit,” Williams said, adding that the impact helped him get to know both the campus and the community personally.

Williams said that this project serves as a foundational building block for managing the hundreds of art pieces under Alamance Arts care.

Macam emphasized how the undertaking affects the region.

“I think overall we have a really thriving art scene here in Burlington and really Alamance County as a whole,” Macam told the Elon News Network. “And so being able to sort of centralize all this together with our public art guides, we saw that this is a thing that’s growing.”

Current guides remain available in person at the Alamance Arts building in Graham and on their official website until the student-crafted updates are finalized for public release.

“I hope this project turns into a way for not just the community to engage in more public art, but also the community of Elon to engage with Alamance County and Burlington as well,” Massanelli told the Elon News Network.