Over the weekend, two things happened:
- One of the pieces of art in the Uproar Arts Festival was removed from its position in front of My Muses at Carr Mill Mall, at the request of Nathan Milian, the property manager. The artwork, “Unbound,” (below) was the true story of a woman who saved a bald eagle from a bear trap. The eagle died, and she was arrested for tampering with an endangered species. It has since been moved to the Arts Center, and we highly recommend you see it. (The art was specifically selected for My Muses, which recently opened a gallery and would have benefitted from the increased foot traffic.)
- Two artists visiting from Charlotte were towed from the Carr Mill Mall parking lot, after installing their artwork on Friday, after they went to Spotted Dog for lunch. (As you might know, Carr Mill Mall has a predatory towing problem.) The artists had to pay $500, an exorbitant cost for visiting artists.
We cannot do anything about the first point, although it’s disheartening and dismaying that Carr Mill Mall removed a piece of artwork. Uproar was launched in 2023 to support small businesses, especially downtown Carrboro and Chapel Hill during the quieter summer months – and brings visitors and dollars to our downtown.
But we can do something about the second point. As costs rise, fewer artists can live in Carrboro and Chapel Hill, and we should embrace and celebrate artists who live here, as well as artists who visit.
So we’d like to raise $500, quickly, and give it to the artists from Charlotte to cover their towing costs. We’ve been in touch with Katie Murray, the director of the Orange County Arts Commission, and told her our plans. We’d like to show that our community supports artists, and the Uproar Festival. We’re hoping 100 people donate $5 dollars each, which we’ll give directly to the artists. Any additional funds will be donated to the Orange County Arts Commission.
You can donate here. For each $100 we raise, we’ll remove an artist from the SenraB Towing Truck.
