Last week, ComEd celebrated the unveiling of its new Solar Spotlight Pyramid, a towering artwork created by artist Shala with the help of local high school students and installed in Gallery Guichard’s new sculpture garden in Bronzeville. ComEd executives joined area teens, community leaders and local artists to celebrate the completion of the solar-powered installation. Last February, ComEd launched its Solar Spotlight Program during Black History Month engaging 60 African American high school students from across Chicagoland encouraging them to explore STEM (science, technology, engineering and math). This year’s program taught students about STEM Via the Arts. The program included workshops where the students learned about solar energy, African-American trailblazers, and the earliest forms of STEM via African history. Local artist Shala collaborated on the pyramid with the Solar Spotlight students who used design elements from modern-day logos and ancient hieroglyphics to create personalized symbols on the solar pyramid. Gallery Guichard, Bronzeville’s premier gallery of art, partnered with ComEd to construct the installation. ComEd’s Solar Spotlight Pyramid is the first art project created by students in ComEd’s Solar Spotlight Program. Now in its fourth year, the Solar Spotlight program is the highlight of ComEd’s annual celebration of Black History Month.

PHOTO CAPTION: Solar Spotlight students join Anne Pramaggiore, president and CEO of ComEd, in front of ComEd’s Solar Spotlight Pyramid, which was unveiled on Friday, Aug. 18, at Gallery Guichard in Bronzeville.