03 Apr A Look at the Creative Process: “Spartanburg” by Daryl Thetford
At Coldwell Banker Caine, we are passionate about the arts. It is one of the four pillars of our Caine Cares philanthropy platform, as we have a rich history of supporting local artists. So, when we started making plans for our new Spartanburg office, incorporating some fantastic artwork into the space was a priority. The most central and largest piece is “Spartanburg” by Daryl Thetford.
Thetford’s process is digital but differs from other artists in the space. Everything you see originates from his own photographs: imagery of street signs, graffiti, metal, worn and weathered painted walls, train cars, old maps, and people. Thetford says, “Although I have used as few as 50 images to create an artwork, more often 200 or more photographs are used in this process.” He first takes raw digital files and develops the images. Then, he changes them to black and white. Through layering, the work starts to take shape and all of the colors originate from the subjects. Signs and graffiti often provide words, train cars add rust and numbers, and urban poster walls give texture, bringing in torn pieces of paper and posters.
He works to highlight each city’s personality, and with our commissioned Spartanburg piece, his goal was to convey the history of the area while also showing its growth with a contemporary and urban feel – a mix of old and new, technology and history.
Here’s a look at all of the details that went into his creation:
Spartanburg’s historic past is most apparent in the smokestacks that represent textile mills of years past as well as the railroad blended into the Denny’s building. A letter from the newspaper editor, Charles Petty, from 1890 described the construction of the smokestacks, and pieces of it can be found around the two central stacks. In various white spaces of the piece, there are words that help to tell the story: textile, railroad, southern harmony, Daniel Morgan, Milliken, Coldwell Banker Caine, Marshall Tucker, shape notes, Gilbert’s Shoe, Hub City, Glendale, Pink Anderson, Morgan Square, and 1859.
Several Spartanburg history-makers can be seen in the work. Former President and CEO of Milliken & Company, Roger Milliken, is shown on a weathered poster to the right of his company’s doors. Former Chairman, CEO, and Treasurer of Inman Mills, Robert Chapman appears on the far-right window behind the bike rental stand. Notable blues musician, Pink Anderson, who inspired Johnny Cash and lent his name to the British rock band Pink Floyd, is sitting in the coffee shop at the Masonic Lodge playing his guitar. Finally, a Marshall Tucker poster hangs on the door of the Coldwell Banker Caine building since the band got their start in Hub City.
Other landmarks featured in the piece include: One Morgan Square, City Hall, the Drayton Mills water tower, First Presbyterian Church, the Piedmont Club, the Beacon, the Spartanburg Business Technology Center, BMW, First Baptist Spartanburg, the Episcopal Church of the Advent, Gilbert’s Shoe Store, the Greenville-Spartanburg airport, Daniel Morgan’s statue, the downtown fountain in Morgan Square, and the new A.C. Marriott hotel. Cell towers also remind the viewer that this is a contemporary modern place, not just history.
To get a closer look at this masterpiece, we invite you to stop by our new office at 151 S Daniel Morgan Avenue. Join us on Thursday, April 19 from 5 – 9 pm to celebrate our 85th year with us at the Grand Opening and Inaugural Artist Reception! Page Jones Davis will display her colorful abstracts, landscaped, and portraiture as the featured artist. Then listen to live music by Asheville’s hottest “Newgrass” group, Fireside Collective, and enjoy BBQ from Cribbs Catering. We hope you see you there!
