Declaration will be exlamation point
"You can bet there will be frenzy in Campbell Stadium on Nov. 29 when Osceola throws down the spear at midfield before the Florida-Florida State football game.
And piggybacking on that excitement, the city of Tallahassee will throw down a second spear just a few hundred yards away.
By November — possibly on the weekend of the UF-FSU game — officials will unveil the steel-glass-and-light sculpture called "Declaration," in a newly constructed roundabout at the intersection of Gaines Street and Woodward Avenue.
The sculpture will be a 20-foot tall, inverted steel cage cone, hung with colored glass panels and featuring 13 beams of light. The pointed cone, with a center shaft of light, is meant to resemble a spear like Osceola's and a punctuation mark.
"This will be an exclamation point," said Kenneth Von Roenn, who designed the sculpture. "It marks the union of the university and the community in a celebration of what Gaines Street is all about."
Von Roenn is a nationally famous glass artist and architect, who last summer became director of FSU's Master Craftsman program, which is constructing "Declaration." The Master Craftsman program, part of FSU's College of Visual Arts, Theatre and Dance, is a hands-on student experience in the "confluence of art and entrepreneurship." Students help produce murals, statues, graphics, furniture and art for the university and public. In a bit of kismet, the Master Craftsman studio is adjacent to the Gaines Street roundabout where "Declaration" will be erected.
The sculpture and roundabout are the final flourishes of a Gaines Street revitalization that has been constructed in three phases over five years. The project took a one-time, four-lane industrial corridor and converted it to a two-lane, landscaped, pedestrian-friendly street, which has attracted new restaurants, stores and apartment complexes.
The final leg of remodeling, from Woodward Avenue to Lake Bradford Road, has been closed to traffic since early May. But that leg will be complete by the third week in August — if not sooner — in time for the opening of the university school year.
The concrete pad for the sculpture was poured in the roundabout last week. Construction on the sculpture will begin in September.
The steel cage will be constructed in the back lot of the Master Craftsman studio. It is expected to take six weeks to complete the cage, which will be lifted by a crane onto the roundabout. Von Roenn's students and artisans will erect a curtain around the sculpture, as they hang the glass.
The glass will be illuminated by a dozen 12-inch-diameter lights encircling the sculpture; a 24-inch-diameter beam will project into the sky from the center of the sculpture. The roundabout will be landscaped.
The city is paying the $200,000 construction cost, as well as the estimated $500 annual bill for the sculpture's energy efficient LED lights. The Gaines Street reconstruction, which cost $15 million, was overseen by the Community Redevelopment Agency.
In late October or November, perhaps to coincide with the UF-FSU game, there will be an unveiling ceremony.
"We are very excited about ('Declaration')," CRA Director Roxanne Manning said. "It is the finishing touch to the Gaines Street district. It is unique and I believe people will really appreciate it when it's completed."
The project elicited much criticism and conversation when it was announced in May. Some predicted the lights would distract drivers in the roundabout. Others denounced the centerpiece light — whose beam will be visible from miles away — as "light pollution" and questioned its safety for aircraft. Still others, of course, questioned government spending on public art projects.
Von Roenn and city officials shrug off the criticism. Von Roenn said the tapering shape of the sculpture won't obstruct drivers' vision in the roundabout. He said the Federal Aviation Agency has approved the project, saying it presents no hazard to aircraft. Von Roenn said the sculpture will provide no more "light pollution" than a fast food restaurant.
But Von Roenn welcomes the controversy because it shows the community is paying attention to public art.
"Anytime you can stimulate a conversation, I think that's healthy," Von Roenn said. "I think it's important for the community to weigh in. There always will be people who have a different opinion; there will also be people moved by (the art)."
Von Roenn, 66, is an ardent proponent of public art.
A 1970 graduate of FSU, where he was a scholarship diver on the swim team, he has spent 40 years as an artist and architect. Before returning to Tallahassee, he was president of Glassworks in his native Louisville, which produced more than 1,000 art and architecture projects worldwide. Among other things, Von Roenn designed the world's largest glass sculpture, which sits atop the Wachovia Bank headquarters in Charlotte. He also designed a glass sculpture walkway in downtown Louisville.
Von Roenn designed "Declaration" as a celebration of Gaines Street revitalization, intending it to punctuate the west end of the makeover as the new Cascades Park punctuates the east end — and to signify the point where FSU joins the city. He said public artworks, such as "Declaration," provide "identity, meaning and pride and bring a community together."
"It's not unlike rallying around FSU football: Public art brings an aesthetic that is relevant to a community and makes everyone's life richer," Von Roenn said. "People need to experience art in their everyday lives rather than having to transport themselves to a museum. Public art belongs to the public and its sole reason to be there is to make people's lives richer."
Tallahassee has more than 170 pieces of public art, according to a survey conducted last year by the Council on Culture & Arts. The inventory ranges from murals, busts and stained glass to nearly 90 sculptures. In some ways, "Declaration" replaces one of the city's most striking public sculptures: "Quark." The 70-foot tall, blue-painted steel sculpture spent nearly six years in Doug Burnette Park on Gaines Street, before the artist who loaned it to the city removed it last winter.
Though opinions varied on "Quark" — as they no doubt will for "Declaration" — it never went unnoticed.
"Public art injects energy into our neighborhoods," said Amanda Thompson, COCA's Education and Exhibitions Director. "Large-scale pieces like ("Declaration" and "Quark") create a sense of place and become local landmarks. So much has been invested into Gaines Street's revitalization and this piece will help define a unique brand for the area."
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