Centennial Countdown
As preparations for Centennial Sculpture Park continue, one favorite work, by pioneering kinetic sculptor George Rickey, is temporarily off view. On March 30, curatorial and facilities staff removed the sculpture’s moving parts (two 12-foot stainless steel blades), dismantled the base and relocated the work to storage until park construction is completed next year. Two Lines Up Excentric—Twelve Feet was the 1994 gift of Richard F. Brush.
Don’t Fence Me In
Planners of MAG’s Centennial Sculpture Park have long envisioned that the space, which is scheduled to be completed in 2013, will help make the Gallery a more vital part of the neighborhood, open up the grounds for the public to enjoy, and attract tourism. On July 14, MAG staff celebrated the removal of the first segments of decades-old wrought iron fence separating the construction site from the Neighborhood of the Arts.
In October, portions of the historic fencing were reinstalled behind the Gallery, near Prince Street.
Pictured above, from left: Director Grant Holcomb, architect Mark Bayer and MAG board chairman Andy Gallina welcome staff. Holcomb, director of marketing/communications Patti Giordano, chief curator Marjorie Searl, director of advancement Joe Carney, Dylan Holcomb (son of the director), Gallina, and facilities crew member Keith Hartzog prepare to take down the first segment of fencing. Construction vehicles finish a new roadway that will skirt the future site of the park.
Sculpture Relocation, Part Deux
Todd McGrain’s Passenger Pigeon (story below) now has a new home. Look for it across from the auxiliary parking lot behind the Gallery, to the left of the new back entrance.
Pictured: On September 28, the bronze sculpture got a lift to its new location.
One Step Closer
Work on MAG’s Centennial Sculpture Park is one step closer to reality thanks to a $250,000 gift from the family of Edward D. McDonald. Friends of the Gallery and the McDonald family gathered in May 2010 for the announcement that the main MAG entrance, which will include a walkway designed by nationally known artist Jackie Ferrara, will be named the McDonald Family Plaza. Read the whole story
On the Road to Otterness’s Studio
In October 2010, curator of education Marlene Hamann-Whitmore visited Tom Otterness’s Brooklyn studio, where she found the acclaimed artist (above, with maquettes) hard at work on his major sculptural commission for MAG’s Centennial Sculpture Park. Chief curator Marjorie Searl also took a field trip—to the Indiana stoneworks (above, far right) that will provide the massive limestone blocks for the project.
Progress report from Otterness studio
MAG Commissions Major Sculptural Installation by Tom Otterness
A major sculptural installation by American artist Tom Otterness will anchor a new community park on the Gallery grounds, director Grant Holcomb announced in April 2010. The selection of Otterness, one of the leading figures in public art, caps a two-year search by the Gallery for an artist of national stature whose work is meaningful, engaging and accessible.
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