E Pluribus Unum (sculpture)
Funded solely by private donations and fundraising by the Central Indiana Community Foundation (CICF), the sculpture was scheduled to be unveiled on September 22, 2011, the 149th anniversary of Abraham Lincoln's initial reading of the Emancipation Proclamation to members of his Cabinet.
[3] E Pluribus Unum, named after the Latin phrase meaning "From many, one," was to be a re-contextualized reproduction of the nameless, semi-nude African American male sculpture seated at the base of the west facade of the Soldiers' and Sailors' Monument in downtown Indianapolis.
Wilson submitted only one entry to the Indianapolis Cultural Trail committee and the design proposal of E Pluribus Unum was accepted without modification.
[2] Additionally, Wilson planned to substitute a flag of his own design for the pair of broken manacles lifted upward in the right hand of the formerly enslaved figure.
[9] The sculpture was planned to be located on the Indianapolis Cultural Trail at the northeast corner of Delaware and Washington streets, near the City-County Building.
[5] Some opponents of the artwork's location are concerned about the statue's close proximity to the Marion County Jail, pointing to current racial disparities in mass incarceration in the United States.
[7] The original figure of E Pluribus Unum, a formerly enslaved African American man, is part of a 250-ton sculpture known as the Peace group, which was designed by Herman Matzen and carved by German sculptor Rudolph Schwarz from fifty five separate blocks of limestone.
[14] These post-Reconstruction era of the United States depictions of formerly enslaved people, often shown with uncertain, upward gazes aimed toward their liberators, minimized African American efforts and sacrifices in obtaining freedom and instead interpreted the Emancipation Proclamation as an act of white benevolence.
[14] E Pluribus Unum was commissioned by the Central Indiana Community Foundation (CICF) to be included on the Indianapolis Cultural Trail: A Legacy of Gene & Marilyn Glick.
With the use of new text panels, sounds, lighting, and non-traditional pairings of objects, Wilson leads viewers to recognize that changes in context create changes in meaning.
Wilson's juxtaposition of evocative objects forces the viewer to question the biases and limitations of cultural institutions and how they have shaped the interpretation of historical truth, artistic value, and the language of display.
[22] This material was chosen for E Pluribus Unum because of its prominence in Indianapolis architecture in the late nineteenth century and to reflect the state's geological heritage.
[15] In the case of E Pluribus Unum, Wilson encouraged research about the African American experience in Indianapolis and incorporated public outreach in order to educate the community and promote dialogue.
Held at the historic Madam Walker Theatre in the Indiana Avenue district in Indianapolis, Wilson discussed his prior work and unveiled the digital rendering for E Pluribus Unum to a small crowd of local students and community members.
In Emancipation and the Freed in American Sculpture (1916), Murray charges that with the symbolic and figurative overload of the Peace group and its sister composite, the War group on the east facade of the monument, the African American figure appears as an offensive, last-minute addition:[14] "It reminds me of the 'grand finale' of our old country tableau-exhibitions, in which finale (illuminated by red fire) we would try to introduce every character that had been used in the preceding 'pictures'—from 'Mother Goose' to the 'Angel of the Resurrection,' and from 'Columbus' to 'Uncle Tom and Eva'—adding, of course, 'Uncle Sam' and 'Columbia' with the Flag, and as many other characters as we were able to costume and could crowd on the stage."
"I feel an impulse to seize this 'super' by his dangling foot and slide him gently off into oblivion—or else say to him, as sternly as I can: 'Awake, awake, put on thy strength ... shake thyself from the dust; arise.'
After Wilson presented a slideshow of his previous work, the meeting became heated when a small, organized group began to voice their opposition to the artwork.
[10] Indianapolis Cultural Trail curator Mindy Taylor Ross stated, "It was just one of those situations where there are hundreds of people there and the loudest voices get heard and everyone else gets drowned out.
"[26] Following the talk at the Madam Walker Theatre, Wilson appeared on the Amos Brown radio show to continue to dialogue with the community.
[32] Those that disapprove of Wilson's use of the freed slave have shared a number of other suggestions for subject matter, such as a sculpture of Major Taylor or a modern African American family.
[35] The annual Joyce Foundation grant supports community engagements and the development of dance, music, theater, and visual arts by artists color in major Midwestern United States cities.
[17] This outreach was to consist of discussions led by local art educators and the Greater Indianapolis Progress Committee's Race and Cultural Relations Leadership Network, with each session limited to 20 participants.
