Published: July 06, 2007 11:41 pm         

That's a Wrap: City sets out on a wild, colorful romp

An editorial page week in review

The positive buzz around downtown Terre Haute has gotten a little bit louder.

A week ago, the long-anticipated public art exhibit conducted by Swope Art Museum was launched and 30 colorful fiberglass colts were placed in designated locations around the city. The colts have been painted in a wide array of designs, many of which reflect the themes of their specific sponsors.

The result is an eye-popping — and eye-opening — display that has injected energy, enthusiasm, color and spirit into the community. It was a brilliant idea that has been executed to full effect.

The exhibit is titled “Horsing Around in Terre Haute” and is a fund-raising project for the Swope museum designed to capitalize on the popularity of the Super Bowl champion Indianapolis Colts.

The football Colts, of course, have a special tie to Terre Haute because the city is home to the NFL’s summer training camp, which opens in late July at Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology. The sculptured colts will be in place throughout the summer and have drawn a great deal of interest from passersby and downtown visitors in the short time they’ve been in place.

The “Horsing Around” exhibit has been the perfect project to draw new attention to the Seventh Street Arts Corridor, which was mostly completed this spring. A cluster of brightly painted colts are on display up and down Seventh Street from Walnut to Cherry streets.

Compliments are in order for all those who have been involved in bringing this project to fruition, and to all the sponsors who gave a colt a summer home and gave the museum a monetary boost.

If you have not been downtown to see the colts, it’s worth the trip. To assist you, take a look at the special feature in this Sunday’s Tribune-Star highlighting the project. Included will be a map showing the locations of all 30 painted colts.

— Max Jones, editor