Candace Lewis, Former Board Member During the month of September, 1982, F.A.R. sponsored an exhibit of site-specific art works in a neighborhood that had been vacated for the construction of the Century Freeway in Lynwood, CA. The construction of this freeway was delayed for more that a decade due to legal actions brought by various environmental and community organizations. The concerns of the ten cities severed by the freeway corridor of the proposed freeway included increased pollution and traffic, as well as the dislocation of ten communities and more that 13,000 housing units in an area with a less that 1% vacancy rate. This action resulted in a seventeen mile long, and six block wide ghost town of abandoned houses and empty lots. Over time the area became the domicile of homeless people, abandoned animals, and crime in the form of, prostitution, murder, drug sales, and gang activity that spilled over into the surrounding communities. The artists chose to work in a section of the corridor located in the city of Lynwood which had once been declared "The All American City" by the federal government in part because they were intrigued by the exposure of the paradoxical relationship between two monuments of the American way of life, its freeways, and its suburbs. The art work installed in the Transitional Use exhibit interacted with the decaying environment and surrounding inhabited neighborhoods, and invited diverse and provocative perspectives on the construction of this freeway. The eight self selected participating artists utilized vacant areas between the abandoned houses, both the interiors and exteriors of the houses, and art works posted in the surrounding inhabited areas of the neighborhood for their installations. In addition, the artists and the members of F.A.R. provided speaking engagements and guided tours of the exhibit to various community organizations such as schools and churches. Those who attended the exhibit were also provided with a map of the 20 square block route of the exhibit, which doubled as an announcement. This exhibit received positive critical reviews in several local newspapers, two national magazines, and was featured on national television news on CNN. Additional historical and photographic background material is available at Jeff Gate's site "In Our Path", an ongoing photo essay and documentation of the construction of the Century Freeway. Participating Artists: Candice Lewis Maren Hassinger Jon Peterson Ann Preston Judy Simonian Mark Williams Megan Williams Melvin Ziegler Images from Transitional Use