ELK GROVE, CA (MPG) - The Cosumnes Community Services District board of directors unanimously approved a $125,000 contract to install public art at the CORE Recreation Center. The sculpture will use images of value to the community.

The artist selected by a district committee is Sijia Chen, a Los Angeles-based multimedia artist who owns Sijia Chen Studio.

Engineering director Scott Jones said Chen’s process of engaging the local community in her artwork set her apart from 13 other applicants.

“So in other words, this artwork isn’t just going to be a reflection of Sijia’s values, her thoughts, her ideas of what she wants in the art but a reflection of our community’s, based on the feedback that we get,” Jones said.

The community engagement process will begin with a website where Elk Grove residents can share their thoughts. That will be followed by an in-person workshop with Chen.

Jones read a statement from Chen describing her concept, which would include cutouts of images important to locals.

“In my paper-cut collage paintings, I construct intricate visual narratives using material of personal significance to the community,” Jones read. “Immigration forms, menus, personal photos are turned into cut-out shapes, carefully woven together, reflecting the multifaceted layers of individual and shared experiences.”

The sculpture would likely stand more than 11 feet tall, with columns made of stainless-steel cutouts. It would be lighted at night, projecting the shapes onto the surrounding space.

Jones said the selection committee was chosen to give a variety of perspectives. Members included Jones and Liz Irons from the Elk Grove Art Commission, and maintenance workers to assess the practicality of maintaining a proposed piece. A fire department inspector, a landscape designer and a recreation manager rounded out the committee.

The $125,000 appropriation includes the planning and community outreach, engineering and permitting, Chen’s design fee, and transportation and installation. 

Jones said the art installation would be scheduled for completion in spring 2025, to coincide with CORE’s opening.

Director Angela Spease asked how the sculpture would be protected from rust. Jones replied that the combination of stainless steel and high-grade paint should keep it from rusting. He added that the bottom section of panels will be moveable, allowing maintenance staff to clean inside.

Director Orlando Fuentes commended the selection.

“I love public art. The more, the better, and the more diverse the artists are, in terms of how they express themselves through different materials,” Fuentes said. “I really like this structure, and I’m looking forward to seeing its completion in the daytime but especially at night, when the lights are on and it’s projecting out all of the shapes that are cut out from those stainless-steel panels.”

The five board members unanimously approved the contract.

In other business, the board approved the annexation of a property at 8688 Sheldon Road into Community Facilities District No.1 (Elk Grove Fire Protection). Fees paid by property owners within the district support the Cosumnes Fire Department.

Firefighters Burn Institute Executive Director Director Joe Pick thanked the district for its support in the Fill the Boot fundraiser. The proceeds benefit the institute, which provides services for burn survivors. Pick said Cosumnes Fire raised $28,879.