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'Che (Banucock’s _g—w_ ^—M Welcome Freshmen-PAGE 2 m "W Restaurant Profiles-PAGE 5 i w# M MM MM%^MM MM wusctopso-pages l«^r JM. Theatre Schedule-PAGE 8 _J__O 1 1 Friday, Aucust 18. 2000 UNIVERSITY OF. SOUTH CAROLINA Columbia, S.C. «► Palmetto trees grace the Mtblanbs Sean Rayford The Gamecock n--- TgflMUM —TH I--1 ' mm~Z- . . ,vW^ Palmetto Tree Project beautifies Columbia Bby Jennifer Pesce The Gamecock ost people have noticed the Palmetto tree designs popping up around the Midlands area, but many are unaware of their mean ing. These vivid and artistic designs are a part of the Palmetto Tree Project, which is funded by the Cul tural Council of Richland and Lexington Counties, the city of Columbia, Lexington County, Richland County, and members of the local business com munity. The Palmetto Tree Project took oil'during sum mer 1999 with the intention of bringing publicity to South Carolina’s state tree, as well as bringing local artists and businesses together as a team in or —BWBBB m BBBBBBBWBBMM— dcr to more closely unite the community. There arc 89 trees in all, each one made from steel cutouts supplied by Chcmoff/Silvcr and As sociates. The Palmetto trees stand to be 9 1/2 feet tall and weigh 525 pounds. Various businesses and individuals sponsored each tree for $1000, which stipend the artists for their work. Most of the trees were created by individual artists, but several of them were designed as a group effort. Students at several local schools created trees in their art classes. The Palmetto Project coincided with USC’s bi centennial. The Project allowed for USC’s art de partment to create a-tree for its collection. The tree standing in front of Longstreet Theatre, titled “USC at 200: A Bicentennial Journey Into the Past and Future,” was created by Greg Leonard, fore man of the Art Department Workshop. Leonard collected old photos from the South Carolina archival database and put them into a col lage on one side of the tree to create a look back at the past 200 years of USC. The other side consists of images from adver tising design databases coming together to at tempt a futuristic view of USC’s next 200 years. A great deal of time was pul into the creation of USC’s bicentennial tree. “All together, the tree took about 100 hours to create," Leonard said. The Project will come to a close Nov. 5, when the trees will be auctioned off. Proceeds from the auction will go to the Cultural Council of Rich land and Lexington Counties, with a small per centage going to the artists who created the trees. Before the auction, there will be an American Diabetes Association 5K Walk of the Palmetto Trees on Sept. 24. For more information on the walk, call 1-800-Diabetes. The trees will be displayed at The South Car olina State Fair from October 5-15. This project is largest public art effort to ever be installed in the Midlands. The goal for the pro ject was basically to influence the area’s apprecia tion for art and culture, while displaying fine art for residents and visitors to see while they travel through town. Thus far, the Project has been successful in meet ing its goals. It has opened a door for many more art projects to take off in the future. Each tree has an individual meaning and it’s own original style. ^ * 0 Pio\os B While you were gone... Trom the mountain to the sea... by Ann Marie Miani Tiih Gamecock When my parents told me they were coming down from Connecticut to visit the week of the Fourth of July, I sat in my dorm room wondering what I wasgoipg to do with them for live days. Well, I thought,we could go to a Bombers game, or to Finlay Park, or to the Riverbanks Zoo. Then it hit: the South Car olina Aquarium. CHARLESTON - The South Carolina Aquarium, located on the Charleston Har bor, is dedicated to the conservation of South Carolina aquatic life. The aquarium is split into five exhibits showcasing aquatic life from the mountains to the sea. The exhibits are mountain forest, the Piedmont, coastal plain, the coast, and the ocean. - Above: Baby sea turtle at the South Carolina Aquarium. Right: Scuba diver cleans the rocks in the ocean tanks. He Is surrounded by flounders and other ocean life. %r The Mountain Forest The Mountain Forest is the first ex hibition in the aquarium. It’s a walk through exhibit through a mountain ravine cascade. The voyage starts at the foothill streams filled with smallmouth bass. The streams become last-moving brooks and provide a home for rainbow trout and other fish. Habitat niches were recreated loi smaller animals, such as salamanders, lottrlc hrut tnrlloc unrl u/Dtor cnirlorc To give the Mountain Forest exhibit a realistic atmosphere, the visitor feels the cool air and mist that are common to that type of environment. Ledges provide a place for plants, such its tulip polar, hemlock and maple trees to grow and pro vides shelter for various birds, such as the Carolina Wren. The birds are allowed to fly freely around the Forest because of a special design and a glass roof. The exhibit is colored by many flowers typical of the Mountain regions, such as the hydrangeas, dogwoods, mountains laurels and many other wild flowers. The Piedmont The Piedmont is the next exhibit on the voyage through South Carolina. It’s dislingiushed by dammed rivers and reservoirs that provide hydroelectric power for the stale. This exhibit shows the various types of aquatic life of the Piedmont and shows the benefits of reservoirs. There is a free-flowing river environment that includes a number of fish. Catfish, white bass, darters, and blue gills are all are all incorporated in this environment. There are giant fly models suspended from the ceilings Mutlimedia presentations are included in this exhibit, as well. There are video presentations about aquatic insects and fly fishing. Fish see page B4 ----—---;-:-1 A flounder swims in the Ocean Exhibit of the South Carolina Aquarium. bouth Carolina Aquarium July-August 9a.m.-7p.m. September-October 9a.m.-5p.m. March-June 9a.m.-5p.m. f&vember-February 10a.m.-5p.m. Adults $lC.OO Sfeniors(62+) $12*00 Sttidents(12-17)$ft*00 ildrep(under 3) '!/ h r*