News Flash

NORFOLK, VA – In response to damages sustained during a recent windstorm, workers from the City of Norfolk have taken down temporary components of a new art display until a permanent installation is completed later this summer.

City officials recently dedicated a public art project called “End of Massive Resistance,” an 8-foot-by-57-foot wall commemorating the February 1959 end of segregation within Norfolk’s public school system. A permanent display in downtown Norfolk’s Flatiron Park will include 14 interconnected pieces of structural glass and steel fit together to resemble the symbolic breakdown of a brick wall. Panels include images of the “Norfolk 17,” a group of Black students who integrated Norfolk’s schools decades ago, and jointly recognizes those from the “Lost Class of 1959” who were unable to complete their education due to Massive Resistance-driven school closures during the 1958-59 academic year.

One of the display’s glass panels accidentally shattered during fabrication in mid-April, days prior to its scheduled shipment to Norfolk. As a result, the art project’s April 27 dedication ceremony featured a Plexiglas replica of the final design. The City chose not to postpone the dedication after several invited guests, including the artists and members of the Norfolk 17, had made prior travel arrangements to be in Norfolk at that time. The dedication event was successful and gave the public and those closest to the project an early look at how the permanent display will soon appear.

The City had intended for the temporary display to remain in place until the permanent components are complete. Inclement weather recently damaged these structures beyond repair and, in an abundance of caution, the temporary exhibit has since been removed. The City is awaiting delivery of the steel and glass pieces to install the permanent display, and signs will soon go up within Flatiron Park to provide updates on the upcoming installation schedule.