The scene looks like something out of a low-budget time-travel movie: Armed with hammers and nails, a swarm of high-school students are laboring away at a huge pyramid, modeled after those in Egypt. Around them, attendees of Canton’s First Friday mill about, equal parts confused and intrigued. The students are using artifacts from the steel and rubber industries — a nice regional touch — to build the hieroglyphic forms that ornament the pyramid. That was on May 6. Now completed, the pyramid is sitting in the lot on the east side of Primo’s Restaurant at the corner of Fourth Street North and Court Avenue. It serves not only as public art, but as an ongoing testament to the two organizations, Project REBUILD and Articulture Unlimited, behind what they’ve called the Sustainable Pyramid Project. Project REBUILD is a non-profit organization designed to reengage at-risk youth by providing them with a caring and compassionate environment while learning hands-on construction skills. The organization not only wants its students to acquire practical skills, it also want them to attain a GED or a high school diploma. The students have worked on a variety of other projects, including rehabilitation and new home building for low-income families. With the Sustainable Pyramid Project, the objective was less utilitarian, but it still demanded the skills the students had been learning. “There are pieces as big as ten feet across and seven feet high,” said Don Brighenti, director of development for Project REBUILD. “I wanted a project that allowed all of our students, and we have about 25 participants in our program, to work on the construction training program.” During First Friday, the students had about 180 pieces to spray-paint, remove, repaint and then reassemble as part of the pyramid. “We were able to get everything up, in spite of the rain,” said Brighenti. The students were helped along the way by Russ Ensign, also known as the Wood Doctor and the owner and designer of Articulture Unlimited. He first joined forces with Project REBUILD two years ago to help YouthBuild USA, which works with the federal government to help educate low-income youth by building affordable housing. Ensign works with numerous forms of cultural art and artifacts — in particular, unique decorative pieces and functional art like furniture. Working with beds, sofas and even bathroom fixtures, Ensign makes a typical piece look and feel distinct. The Sustainable Pyramid Project has a practical side, too, said Brighenti. Students can learn how to use smaller tools that aren’t typically used during homebuilding. “Our idea was for them to get an idea of how to use these tools,” he said. “And then getting them to experience something broader than your average construction trades.” The Sustainable Pyramid Project is made possible through a partnership with ArtsinStark, which made the stipulation that the piece be fully composed of green and sustainable pieces. Some of the pieces they used were old support beams for constructing the framing, wood chips glued together to create boards and a variety of reclaimed artifacts. Even the piece itself will be recycled: When the pyramid is taken down, all the pieces will be reused in other future projects. “The artwork will go on forever,” Brighenti said. Brighenti has big plans for Project REBUILD, including pairing some of the older students in the program with younger, grade-school children. He hopes the younger children will learn some of the skills in their earlier and more teachable years, and is looking for a non-profit organization to partner with on this project. “We want to give them the opportunity to have what we had, using some of our students as student leaders with younger kids,” said Brighenti. In addition, Project REBUILD does a number of community service projects — most notably, is the construction of the gingerbread house that’s part of the Light Up Downtown festival in Canton during the holidays. For more information, visit www.projectrebuild.org or www.articultureunlimited.com.