"Stranger in a Strange Land" rests at visitors center

"Stranger in a Strange Land," a piece by Hillsborough native Charles Pilkey, will sit outside the Hillsborough/Orange County Visitors Center, 150 E. King St., until Sept. 30 as part of the town's sculpture tour.
The piece, crafted from machine parts, ponders the age-old science fiction question of what will happen to our world if nature is overtaken by machines. Inside the globe, the figure of a man raises his arms upward.
Pilkey said he drew the idea from a 1950s novel, "He Who Shrank," and hopes people who visit will think about how their world, even right here in Hillsborough, has seen a slow encroachment of the man-made over the natural.
The sculpture tour, featuring six pieces within walking distance of downtown Hillsborough, invites community participation. Folks who pick up a brochure from the Hillsborough/Orange County Visitors Center can vote for the people's choice by submitting the ballot on the last page of the pamphlet.
You can also enter into a drawing for a Alliance for Historic Hillsborough prize package by taking a photo with each sculpture and posting them on the alliance's Facebook page or on Twitter using the hashtag #HsboST.