If you drive through the small town of Pulaski, in the New River Valley in the next month, you may spot a giant sculpture, with hundreds of ladders intertwined. This temporary art installation is made entirely of borrowed ladders.
75 ladders are fastened together, each with a label indicating the name of the person or family who lent it. The sculpture, called Together We Rise, is in the shape of a home, and once it’s finished, people can walk inside.
The Fine Arts Center of the New River Valley spearheaded this project. Artist Charlie Brouwer, who lives in nearby Floyd County, is the lead builder
“I’m happy with it,” said Brouwer, who’s built similar sculptures in communities across the country, including one in Roanoke in 2011.
This time, Brouwer offered to work alongside other artists and volunteers, instead of taking the entire project on himself.
“That was actually a better way to do this project, because then you have like real people in the community, they’re engaging people that they know,” Brouwer said.
Another local artist and construction worker, Barry Keller, stepped up to assist.
“I’ve never built a house out of ladders before,” Keller said. “I build houses for a living. So I was like, well, I get to build one out of ladders, and that’s pretty neat. And Charlie needed help so I was like, sure, sounds fun.”
Brouwer said his series of ladder structures are all meant to symbolize what’s possible when a community works together.
He said he was inspired to build Pulaski’s structure in the shape of a house, to represent the love of place that people here have. “This is a place a lot of people call home. And they choose to be here. They’re here because they want to be here,” Brouwer said.
Brouwer and Keller will be building the sculpture until the official celebration on Saturday, May 6th, at 6 p.m. Anyone who wants to lend a ladder can do so, from 3:00-6:00 Saturday afternoon at Jackson Park.
The sculpture will stand in downtown Pulaski until June 2, after which time, all of the ladders will be returned to their owners, according to Becky Lattuca, Executive Director of the Fine Arts Center for the New River Valley.
“Pulaski is a really special place, because of its history,” Brouwer said. “It’s evident when you come downtown, you see some businesses are thriving, and some are struggling, and others are closed up. But people still live here. So, I thought, make a home. And that’s the idea.”
