Alexandra Spinney
alex.spinney@gmail
The Newburgh Courthouse: Project Proposal
I am choosing to use this public art project to bring attention to the inspiring yet controversial history of the waterfront, and its role in the history of The City of Newburgh’s commerce and trade, the use of public space, and the cascading effects of urban renewal.
Newburgh’s core position midway between New York City and Albany was once a thriving beacon of industry, shipping, factories, and production. As transportation of goods gradually shifted from shipping to trucking, many industrial based towns along the Hudson fell victim to poverty and dilapidation. In Newburgh’s prime, the waterfront was a bustling wealth of historic homes, factories and merchants. Recently the waterfront is once again flourishing with restaurants, business, promenade and public space. Newburgh is currently going through a historical revival, as restoration and historical societies are bringing back the integrity of many architecturally significant buildings. Amongst these is the Broadway school, the site of the future courthouse. I think that the use of the waterfront mirrors this initiative; as it brings public attention to the potential of what Newburgh can become, and the role that landscape, commerce, and architecture play in the core of a city’s economy. As the renovated courthouse sits on top of a hill, it will stand as a beacon of potential and draw reference to a time where both the heart of the city and the waterfront was thriving.
In illustrating this concept, I plan to create a panoramic landscape of the waterfront separated into multiple panels, juxtaposing as a timeline of history. The style of painting will range from realism to woodcut like markings, drawing reference to prints of Newburgh in the late nineteenth century. I would like to divide the panels as such that pantings three through nine would be addressed as a panorama, with the smaller panel six acting as a skyscape....