Height Arts Engages Land Studio to Assist with Developing

Public Art Projects in Cleveland Heights

Cleveland Heights, Ohio, May 29, 2025 – Heights Arts announces an agreement made with Land Studio on April 23, 2025 to develop new public art projects in the Cedar-Lee and Coventry commercial districts in Cleveland Heights, which were severely impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. This partnership is made possible by approximately $250,000 in American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds made available through the City of Cleveland Heights to support these two vital business districts. The resulting public art installations are planned to be completed by the end of 2026.

Heights Arts Executive Director Rachel Bernstein says this initiative represents a way to build upon existing strengths in Cleveland Heights and is the perfect project to kick off the organization’s 25th anniversary year. “In addition to installing new public art, the ARPA grant will help us to continue our work with organizations in the Cedar Lee district and city-wide to showcase the many arts and culture opportunities inherent to the community,” said Bernstein. “There is currently a lot of momentum among arts organizations and community stakeholders, which is crucial for success.”

To manage the new project, Heights Arts convened the Public Art Project Team (PAPT), a group including professional planners, architects, artists, and the Heights Arts Exhibition Community Team, one of three volunteer groups Heights Arts relies upon to develop its high-quality community-focused programming. Working with Land Studio, these teams will engage community input to help shape the project. The $250,000 budget will be allocated to Land Studio for project management and sub-consultants ($40,000), with $160,000 to $200,000 dedicated to artwork and place making costs, which includes artist design, fabrication, installation, engineering, and stakeholder engagement. The remaining dollars will go towards creating a “Home to the Arts” website and working with the Cedar-Lee Special Improvement District on branding.

Land Studio has long been the region’s leader in helping create or reshape public districts that enhance the quality of life in Greater Cleveland. Director of Arts and Special Projects Erin Guido is excited to partner with Heights Arts on this initiative. “Public art has the power to reflect a community’s unique identity, tell its story, and enhance its visual identity,” Guido said. “This work will help express outwardly what’s already within — the artists, local businesses, and cultural organizations that make Cleveland Heights truly special,” Guido continues.

Heights Arts Public Art

Part of the organization’s mission is to introduce and expose people to various mediums of art. Public art is a very accessible way to do this while supporting neighborhood transformation and growth. Heights Arts has managed many high-profile public art installations including:

• Large mural on the back of the Cedar-Lee movie theater building – Artist Robert Muller
• Two murals in the Cedar-Fairmount district – Artist Jesse Rhinehart
• The Coventry P.E.A.C.E. Arch, which serves as the entryway to a public park at the intersection of Euclid Heights Boulevard and Coventry Road – Artist Barry Gunderson
• Coventry Fences flanking Coventry Road throughout the commercial district – Artist Brinsley Tyrell
• Coventry Benches installed in the commercial district – Artist Raymond Bugelski
• Streetscape design and signage used in the Cedar-Fairmount and Coventry districts – Artist Raymond Bugelski
• The former Heights Youth Center Mosaic- Artist Augusto Bordelois with HYC children

Heights Arts has also presented numerous temporary public art exhibitions, including the installation of a dozen large-scale sculptures around the Severance Circle “ring road” in the mid-2000s, Knitscape (adorning street trees with colorful knitted wrappings), Fencepiration (transforming a chain-link construction fence into colorful abstract mural using recycled materials), Play Me I’m Yours (part of a national project that placed decorated pianos in public spaces where passersby could stop and play the instruments), and poetry squares incorporating poetry and art in collaboration with Heights High School and Heights Libraries.

About Heights Arts

Heights Arts is a multi-disciplinary arts nonprofit based in Cleveland Heights, Ohio. A few miles from University Circle – home to cultural destinations including Cleveland Museum of Art and Severance Hall – Heights Arts draws from a region rich with visual and literary artists, musical performers, art educators, administrators, and others who make their livelihood in visual, performing, or literary arts.

This year marks 25 years of Heights Arts providing experiences between local musicians, literary, visual artists, and the community. The organization contributes to the region’s artistic vitality by showing and selling artworks by emerging and established artists in its gallery and store, presenting chamber music and community concerts in intimate settings and public spaces, and is home to the Heights Poet Laureate and popular literary Ekphrastacy – Artists Talk and Poets Respond series.

For updates on this exciting public art project, visit heightsarts.org and land-studio.org.

Click the button below to read the official press release.