Town Enclosure Pavilion by CLB Architects

Americans for the Arts honored CLB Architects’ Town Enclosure pavilion among 50 outstanding public arts projects created in 2018 through the Public Art Network Year in Review program.

This is the only national program that specifically recognizes the most compelling public art. Projects are chosen by public art experts, and unveiled at Americans for the Arts’ Annual Convention in Minneapolis. This is the 18th year that Americans for the Arts has recognized public art works.

Designed by CLB Architects, Town Enclosure is both a sculpture and an accessible gathering space, welcoming a diverse range of both informal and programmed performing and visual arts events. The visually powerful design is elegant in its simplicity, consisting of a circle of timber panels, sourced from sustainably managed forests. Angled inwards and evenly spaced four feet apart, one side of each is painted in black. This creates a space that is simultaneously open and closed, changing according to the viewer’s position. From one angle it appears mostly opaque, whereas, from another, it is nearly transparent. The fluidity of the design encourages movement around and through the structure, so that viewers gain the full experience. It has a limited material footprint, demonstrating a commitment to sustainability. The foundation is made of re-usable steel covered by a circular gravel field, using no concrete at all.

“Town Enclosure is much more than a sculpture”, explains Eric Logan, Principal of CLB Architects. “It is an armature for the celebration of creative activity, performance, and discovery, a backdrop for the various activities this community park supports.”

Jackson Hole Public Art (JHPA) proposed the pavilion concept as a temporary sculpture and a free venue for arts performance, practice, and display to Center for the Arts and was selected as The Center’s 2018 Creative in Residence curator. The Center’s Creative In Residence curatorship provided partial funding, space to display large-scale sculpture, and staff support for coordinating the use of Town Enclosure.

Public art administration and fundraising for the structure was provided by JHPA and supported by more than 40 builders, fabricators, designers, and finishers. CLB Architects created the design and construction drawings, and Premier Powder Coating built and installed the sculpture with support from Two Ocean Builders and JHPA staff.

Town Enclosure is located at the Center for the Arts in Jackson, Wyoming and offers community artists and groups opportunities for free and informal arts experiences. Examples of activities Town Enclosure has hosted include Art Association Life Drawing with live models, musical performances by local musicians, open rehearsals of the “Normal Heart,” directed by Andrew Munz, and a blue tape mural by Joshua Doolittle. 

“The best of public art can challenge, delight, educate, and illuminate. Most of all, public art creates a sense of civic vitality in the cities, towns, and communities we inhabit and visit,” said Robert L. Lynch, president and CEO of Americans for the Arts. “As these Public Art Network Year in Review selections illustrate, public art has the power to enhance our lives on a scale that little else can. I congratulate the artists and commissioning groups for these community treasures, and I look forward to honoring more great works in the years to come.”

Architect: CLB Architects
Location: Jackson, Wyoming
Year: 2018
Team: Eric Logan, Matt Thackray, Forrest Britton
Photography: Matthew Millman

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