At the base of the artwork on the FSK Hotel, along West Patrick Street, a small public art plaza is planned. It will be a kind of urban room, a gathering space, made of materials with connections to Frederick's history.

This plaza conceals several layers of surprise and discovery. It will contain an exedra, the name for a curved outdoor seating area used in ancient Rome for philosophy discussions. This bench is for rest, to allow artwork viewing, and to foster conversation. At the center of concentric circles of quartzite paving stones is a low glass turret or wellhead. Through this glass opening can be seen shining water running underground, a metaphor for the creative imagination found within everyone. At night, light will filter up between the stone pavers throughout the plaza.

Radiating out to the perimeters of the plaza will be thousands of words from residents of all ages and backgrounds. The letters are cut through bronze bands that are bonded to glass and set into the plaza stones. These circles of text illuminate at night from underground. They reach to the wall of the historic FSK Hotel, where etched lettering climbs the vertical stone facade to disappear into the glass overhead. The sculpted glass surface above the plaza catches and reflects light like frozen water, a metaphor for the dreams of those who came before us that became fixed into what we call history today.

Twenty freestanding vertical blades of laminated art glass circling the exedra walls will trace the extraordinarily rich history of the site – a crossroads of history and culture for centuries – and of the artifacts represented in the artwork. The etched white letting and patterns on this glass will stand out against a mass of spreading gingko trees and weeping English yew in the rear planter.

At times, at a certain spot within this plaza, the faint sounds from various periods of this site's long history will become audible.

A smaller secondary plaza in front of the Cultural Arts Center will hold a small, dedicated optical device, like binoculars on a pedestal, that allows viewers to inspect the layered artwork on the building facade at close range, including some details not visible to the naked eye from the ground. This secondary plaza can help reinforce the crucial role the Cultural Arts Center plays in downtown vitality, highlighting the center and a proposed public county-wide arts information desk inside the south entrance.

The strategic location of the entire installation is intended to reinforce and support this underperforming block at the cultural core of the city, including the three adjacent arts destinations. These arts institutions are important because recent research has shown that cultural participation builds community health and strengthens prosperity and quality of life at the grassroots level, among people of every background.

The Dream Pool is designed as a freely accessible cultural and educational resource and a destination for individuals and families. Along with the popular and nearby Community Bridge, The Dream Pool may also serve educational, corporate, church and civic groups, and is meant to strengthen Frederick's identity as a cultural center. The Dream Pool is a place of discovery and reflection where visitors may find themselves inspired with a fresh perspective on history and perhaps ennobled with the unlimited potential of their own imagination.

We invite you to contribute your thoughts to be included in this "dream pool" by clicking the "Be a Part of It" box to the left.

Artist: William Cochran, Architect: Jim MIlls, AIA, Rubeling & Associates

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The Vision • The Process • A Place of Dreams • Imagination • The Glass Veil
The Weaving Layer • Carved Stone • Dream Pool • Artistic Team