Broward Cultural Division’s Public Art & Design Program commissioned a new site-specific artwork, “Walking Sticks with Stories to Tell,” in Fort Lauderdale’s Sistrunk area. The art features a bicyclist, tribal features, and nearby Dillard High School’s mascot, the panther.
Claudia Fitch, a Washington-based artist, installed the sculpture. The art is a reference to the traditions of West Africa, and it brings a new energy to the high-traffic area that is located at southeast corner, NW 27th Avenue near the African American Research Library and Cultural Center.
The piece of art, “Walking Sticks with Stories to Tell” greatly embraces the cultural heritage of West Africa, and also the stories of the people who work, live, and attend school in the Sistrunk neighborhood, including the students in the advanced art program in Dillard High School, who helped develop the concept for the artwork.
Fitch said in a press release, “to create art for a public place, I engage with the community, and the many layers of story that are told by individuals, local environs and regional landscape. In this process, visual metaphors emerge, sparking the imagination and a creative process. The imagery, traditions, colors, and forms in this artwork setting are staged to invite curiosity, conversation, and an exquisite moment of the here and now.”
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