Santa Barbara Public Art Initiative
Dancers
Proposal by Eric Saint Georges
Overview
This scaled‑down model presents a proposed public artwork designed for Spacks Street, a pedestrian passageway located just steps from the Granada Theatre, Santa Barbara’s premier venue for dance companies, touring productions, and flamenco festival performances. The installation celebrates the city’s vibrant dance culture and invites passersby to experience a moment of movement, rhythm, and human expression within the urban landscape.
Concept
The artwork features a series of steel silhouettes, each one created from plasma‑cut steel plates welded together. These figures represent modern dancers and flamenco dancers, captured in dynamic poses that evoke motion, energy, and the emotional intensity of performance.
The silhouettes are intentionally abstracted, simplifying the human form to emphasize gesture, movement, and expressive force. Their arrangement creates a visual rhythm along the passageway, as if the dancers are emerging from the alley itself and transforming an everyday space into a site of artistic encounter.
Each figure is designed to be slightly taller than life‑size, enhancing presence and impact within the pedestrian environment.
Connection to the Granada Theatre
Spacks Street sits close to the Granada Theatre, a cornerstone of Santa Barbara’s performing arts community. This artwork is conceived as a visual reminder of that proximity. The dancers act as ambassadors of the theatre’s spirit, extending its presence into the surrounding streets and inviting pedestrians to feel the cultural heartbeat of the neighborhood.
By placing dance imagery in the public realm, the installation reinforces the identity of the district as a place where creativity thrives—where ballet companies rehearse, flamenco artists perform, and audiences gather to experience world‑class productions.
Materials and Fabrication
Silhouettes: Plasma‑cut steel plates
Construction: Welded assemblies designed for durability and outdoor installation
Finish: Weather‑resistant surface treatment suitable for long‑term public display
Size: Figures slightly larger than life‑size
Model Scale: Approximately 1:10
The silhouettes are mounted a few inches away from the wall, allowing natural light to pass behind them. This spacing creates shifting shadows throughout the day, animating the alley and reinforcing the sense of movement.
Experience for Visitors
As pedestrians walk through Spacks Street, they encounter the dancers at human scale—figures that feel both familiar and iconic. The installation encourages:
Curiosity, drawing people into the alley
Reflection, inviting them to consider the role of dance in Santa Barbara’s cultural life
Connection, linking the everyday act of walking downtown with the expressive world of performance
The artwork transforms a transitional space into a destination, enriching the pedestrian experience and strengthening the cultural identity of the neighborhood.
Artist’s Intention
This project honors Santa Barbara’s longstanding relationship with dance—its companies, its festivals, its audiences, and its artists. By placing dancers in the public realm, the installation celebrates movement as a universal language and acknowledges the Granada Theatre as a beacon of artistic excellence.
Artist: Eric Saint Georges
Website: www.ericsaintgeorges.com
Instagram: @ericsaintgeorges
Email: ericsgc@hawaii.edu