NORCROSS, Ga. — The Norcross Public Arts Commission installed five bronze statues at city parks on May 5, celebrating the city’s unique white squirrel population in an effort to cultivate community.
Commission Chair Liz Simpson said the city’s creation of a public arts master plan a few years ago prioritized the White Squirrels of Norcross as a way to bring the community together.
Simpson said the idea for the art hunt project comes from the Mice on Main in Greenville, SC. While the project gained some traction in the community, the city and commission didn’t have the funding until now.
[DOWNLOAD: Free WSB-TV News app for alerts as news breaks]
White Squirrels of Norcross
The white squirrels are not albino. Instead, the common Eastern gray squirrels have a rare genetic condition called leucism, a partial loss of pigmentation. While Brevard, North Carolina, lays claim as home of the world’s only wild white squirrels, there are plenty in backyards across Norcross.
The city scheduled a ribbon-cutting ceremony for five of the 13 planned statues at the Norcross Gallery & Studios on May 14 at 5 p.m. Public arts commission members, Mayor Craig Newton, project partners, and artists will attend the celebration.
Currently, there are statues at Betty Mauldin Park, Discovery Gardens Park, Lillian Webb Park, Norcross Gallery & Studios, and Thrasher Park. The Norcross PAC chose Atlanta-based Cherrylion Studios to sculpt the bronze squirrels.
After raising $5,000 from the community with marble squirrels and acorns, the commission is ready for part two at Pinnacle Park.
“Since we didn’t have enough money to order all 13 at once, we have divided phase one into two parts,” Simpson said. “The first part is the five that we just installed. The second part will be the remaining seven.”
At its May 4 meeting, the Norcross City Council approved an expansion of the installation to Pinnacle Park, including seven more statues. While existing squirrels are in downtown Norcross, the project is heading southeast across Buford Highway.
“That adds inclusivity,” Simpson wrote to the council. “In keeping with our Master Arts and Culture Plan, this installation lessens a perceived cultural divide and exemplifies inclusiveness for all of Norcross.”
[SIGN UP: WSB-TV Daily Headlines Newsletter]
Pinnacle Park and beyond
With the city’s approval, the Norcross PAC will pursue grant funding and commission members to support the expansion with fundraising efforts. Plans at Pinnacle Park call for five to seven additional squirrel sculptures along walking trails and natural areas, enhancing the park experience and broadening access to public art.
Simpson said the 13th and final White Squirrel of Norcross is going to be “mobile,” keeping the interactive art hunt fresh throughout the year and creating some fun competition.
“The 10,000 will help us with the actual install of the squirrels,” Simpson said. “But the vision is an interactive art hunt, which means an online presence. So there’s some work and development that needs to go into that final presentation.”
The public arts commission’s goal is to raise a total of $25,000 for the White Squirrels of Norcross. The funds will help with the 25% local match required for any grant the project may receive and launch the digital scavenger hunt.
“We need a meeting where we engage with the community and get their ideas,” Simpson said. “Now that we’ve gotten the framework in place and the basic ideas incubated, I think that the public will have more ideas that we never thought of, and it would be an awesome way to relaunch the fundraiser.”