BROADWAY GETS NEW METAL SCULPTURES
“Complex apartment,” a sculpture located outside of the 72nd street subway station.
Artist Don Gummer has constructed nine aluminum and stainless steel sculptures that will run up Broadway from Columbus Circle to 157th street in conjunction with the Broadway Mall Association. The sculptures, which range from 8 to 14 feet tall, will be up until October. Many are based on Gummer’s riff on haiku poems.
“l first became interested in haiku poems because of the simplicity of their structure,” stated the artist. “Three lines stacked together containing 17 syllables. Five in the first line, seven in the middle, and five in the third line. I thought of substituting shapes for the syllables and instead of writing a poem with three sentences and 17 syllables, I made a sculpture with three vertical sections and 17 shapes, five in the bottom section, seven in the middle, and five in the top section. The three sections are separated by horizontal, linear flat rectangles, my version of lined paper.
“l thought that making a series of sculptures that shared a common structural theme would unite them along their shared route on Broadway. I also wanted to see how much variety I could create within a given set of rules. Five sculptures are based on the haiku idea and the other four sculptures have similar stacked elements, and I think they structurally relate to the others.”
Fun fact: Don Gummer’s wife is somewhat famous in her own right: her name is Meryl Streep, and we hear she’s an actress.
Below, check out a list of the names and locations of the sculptures, and read more about the exhibit here. An audio cell phone tour of the exhibition is also available.
Columbus Circle
12-12-12, 2012
Stainless steel and stained glass
114 x 64 x 64 inches
64th Street
Mondrian, 2014
Painted aluminum and stained glass
132 x 96 x 44 inches
72nd Street
Complex Apartment, 2015
Aluminum and stained glass
120 x 96 x 50 inches
79th Street:
Figure 8, 2012
Stainless steel
110 x 42 x 38 inches
96th Street
Open House, 2015
Aluminum and painted aluminum
140 x 98 x 60 inches
103rd Street
High Rise, 2015
Painted aluminum
144 x 62 x 29 inches
117th Street
Open Eyes, 2011
Stainless steel and stained glass
96 x 30 x 30 inches
137th Street
Intersection, 2014
Painted aluminum
168 x 100 x 64 inches
157th Street
After Rome, 2011
Stainless steel
108 x 62 x 50 inches
Image via Broadway Mall Association.
Feh.
I am enjoying the new sculptures in the neighborhood. Complex Apartment is one on my favorites.
I like the Figure 8 on the median at 79th. Will have to check out the others.
Not a fan. They block sight lines. If I’m coming up out of the subway, I want to look at where I’m going and not have loads of metal in my way. There’s so much great architecture on the UWS…why obstruct the view of it?