MACON, Ga. — Art and Roy Scott go way back. He loved it as a young boy and as a young man. Art has meant everything to him.
He was 17-years-old when he enlisted in the Navy and was shipped away from home. That same year when Otis Redding died in a plane crash, and his song,"(Sittin' On) the Dock of the Bay" was released posthumously.
Scott would listen and sing along to the song, he says summed up his life in the Navy.
"That song touched me and meant a lot to me," Scott said.
It touched him so much, that decades later he created an art piece as an homage to Otis Redding, and the song that reminds him of coming of age.
Today he's retired and spends a lot of time creating at his home in Mill Hill Art Village. The East Macon village was created for artists to be near one another.
East Macon is also home to the birthplace of the City of Macon. The city was established in 1823 on the banks of the Ocmulgee River. To celebrate Macon's bicentennial, a park is being created right next to the neighborhood.
On Tuesday, neighbors met to look at plans for the park and share new ideas and feedback for what it'll look like.
"Nothing's structured. It will essentially be the term 'passive park'. It will not have play structures, or splash pads, or basketball courts. It's not that kind of park. It is a contemplative, beautifully grassed and treed- it will be a beautifully grassed and treed park," landscape architect Wimberly Treadwell said.
Scott hopes once the park's created, it'll bring more people and recognition to the arts community in East Macon.
"I think my excitement is in seeing, primarily, in seeing this community helped out," Scott said.
Now, the bicentennial committee is looking for artists from all over Macon to help them create the new park. They're seeking artists to submit qualifications for art to be displayed in the park.
According to the Macon Arts Alliance website, they're looking for work that will:
- Commemorate the history of Macon, evoking emotion. Macon’s history includes hurt, segregation, harshness – many feelings that can be acknowledged.
- Create interest in and around healing past and present, reconciliation, and restoration.
- Inspire people to see the Macon community with hope and a spirit for equity, empathy, social justice, and wholeness of community for the future.
"We want artists of all genres. It might be something that's musical. It might be something that blows in the wind," Treadwell said.
You can find more details about what they're looking for and instructions on applying on the Macon Arts Alliance website.