LandWave
« back to All BlogsBy Debbie Hagan
In Boston’s South End last week, I happened to stumble upon LandWave, a public sculpture created by designers Shauna Gillies-Smith, France Cormier, and Michael Kilkelly of the architectural firm Ground in Somerville. The work appeared in Public Art Under Siege, an article Kris Wilton wrote in our July/August issue. In it she examined the challenges artists, designers, curators, and public art caretakers face, particularly in the light of increasing vandalism. Whether art is intentionally damaged or not, all public works that sit outside eventually need maintenance and upkeep.
LandWave, Gillies-Smith, Cormier, Kilkelly 2011 Photo: Chuck Choi
LandWave runs along the Washington Street edge of Peters Park, serving the community with its dog park, playground, and softball field. The $500,000 sculpture reminds locals of the land's origins. Two crescent-like mounds covered in mosaics of shimmery tiles in varying shades of blue serve as waves that once covered this area. As writer Kris notes in her article, “This work refers to the land on which it stands, the now-filled-in isthmus connecting the Shawmut Pennisula to the mainland.”
LandWave, 2011 Photo: Chuck Choi
An engraved map and commentary on the front of the sculpture shows what former land used to look like and offers this inscription, taken from the book The Memorial History of Boston, 1630 to 1880: “That long narrow strip of land properly called ‘The Neck’...stretched away like a ribbon of varying width to the mainland. Vastly different however to its present aspect was its condition in those early days when the road which traversed it was well-nigh impassible in the spring when horses waded deep in water at full tides, when only timber upon the whole peninsula grew upon the Neck, and the marshes on either land were favorite hunting grounds of the sportsman.”
LandWave, 2011 Photo: Chuck Choi
It's easy to lose sight of this today, the South End being such an urban area, covered almost completely in brick and asphalt. However, the sculpture as a metaphor links contemporary life to its past and serves as both a point of discussion and education for the young and old.
One sad note, I noticed a number of the tiles had already been smashed, which looked to me like the work of skateboarders. As Kris pointed out in her article, damage to public art is an ongoing challenge--how to prevent it and how to repair it once it happens. From the conception of this project, conservator Rika Smith McNally developed a maintenance plan and helped set up the LandWave Fund at the Boston Foundation for its upkeep. Let's just hope there's enough money set aside to cover whatever repairs may be in store for this impressive sculpture.
Read an interview with the artists about this very project on american-architects.com.
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