WKTV Staff
joanne@wktv.org
In 1969, the Grand Rapids area was the recipient of the first piece of Art in Public Places funded by the National Endowment for the Arts.
Fifty years later, SideCar Studios and ArtPeers came together to explore the impact that Alexander Calder’s “La Grande Vitesse” has had on the West Michigan community. The film premiered at the 2019 Festival of the Arts, a three-day celebration of the arts that takes place in downtown Grand Rapids. Festival can credit its foundation to the big red sculpture among other elements.
For those who might have missed the premier, or just want to see the film again, “The Great Swiftness” (which is what”La Grande Vitesse” translates to) will air on WKTV Tuesday, Aug. 6, at 2:30 p.m. and 10:30 p.m. WKTV is available in the communities of Wyoming, Kentwood and Gaines Township on Comcast Channel 25 and on AT&T U-verse Channel 99.
“You see it everywhere on street signs, city signs and on stationary,” John VanderHaagen, director of communications at Frederik Meijer Gardens and Sculpture Park.
The 17-minute film features an array of people from the Greater Grand Rapids community, from artists to familiar faces such as Grand Rapids Mayor Rosalynn Bliss. The guests talk about Calder’s sculpture and the importance of art in general to a community like Grand Rapids. The interviews are mixed with old footage of when “La Grande Vitesse” was installed and dedicated, sprinkled with comments from Nancy Mulnix Tweddale, the leading organizer who helped to bring Calder’s piece to Grand Rapids.
To check out more programming at WKTV, visit the wktvjournal.org and click the schedule tab at the top or read through the many stories about our community.
