A celebration of 'sound and color': Slatterly prepares for a 10th year of Art on the Ave

Every year for the last 10, a new sculpture has gone up on a boulevard in the Slatterly Park neighborhood and the residents invite the city to celebrate its unveiling with them. The event, Art on the Ave, has become a mainstay in the Rochester cultural calendar. This year’s installment (postponed once due to spring storms) takes place Saturday from 9:30 a.m. to 4 p.m.

This year’s hosts Adam and Vanessa Carroll have lived in the Slatterly Park neighborhood for four years now. To commemorate the milestone, they’ll unveil Craig Snyder’s “Flame Theory” at 11 a.m. Saturday.

“Flame Theory” gave Snyder, a metal sculptor, the opportunity to entertain his obsession with fire and color. Initially, though, the idea of a piece of art that would live in a neighborhood perplexed him.

“I do many yearly public art programs and they almost always have the sculptures along Main Street in front of various businesses,” said Snyder. “When I figured it out that my sculpture is in a neighborhood, I was very happy. I think more communities should do this very thing.”

Snyder’s will be the 15th boulevard sculpture in the Slatterly Park neighborhood. (You can view the previous sculptures here.)

Craig Snyder / Submitted

This year’s theme, “Sound and Color” (a title borrowed from the Alabama Shakes album of the same name), explores how music and visual art complement each other and activate responses. To facilitate that exploration, the day will be full of both music and art.

Host Adam Carroll, a guitarist, will revive his California-reggae-rock band, Lion Sight, for a set at 9:30 a.m., while musical guests Fernando Ufret, Sterling Haukom, My Grandma’s Cardigan, and Luke Hendrickson follow with performances throughout the day.

As they play, chalk artist Kathleen Roling will be working on a street mural, and patrons will have a chance to make their own miniature bronze sculpture, thanks to Traveling Foundry.

For more information, see the Art on the Ave event page.

Bryan Lund covers politics and culture for Med City Beat.

Cover photo courtesy organizers