Sunday morning we overslept. I had wanted us to catch the 7:00 a.m. installation of Anchorage’s first real monumental sculpture being “seated” in front of the Anchorage Museum. Thankfully we are just 2 minutes from downtown and arrived just in time to see “Habitat” being lifted off the transport bed. We did miss out on the commemorative lanyards that were given to the first 100 spectators BUT it was a good thing we arrived when we did because as it was we froze our azz's (that's a Gary word) off while the highly skilled crane operators negotiated 36,000 pounds through the closed 6th Avenue and all the spectators. “Habitat” was designed by British sculptor Antony Gormley and fabricated at SteelFab. In February when I was at SteelFab working on another project I got to see "Habitat" in one of the huge bays waiting for some finishing touches. Here are a couple of media links; KTUU and the Anchorage Daily News story link on the statue. I think the real artists were the steel workers and engineers who spent over 1,700 hours to create 57 giant box forms fabricated from 342 plates of stainless steel. What prompted us to attend the installation was not only to show
support for SteelFab but I
read that this could be one of those “I was there when” moments for Gus. Of course the critics have already started
squawking and graffiti and sculpture climbers are probably not far behind but I think Gus put it best after watching the enormous sculpture being gently set in place when he said “after all Mom, Anchorage needs a statue because even New York has one!”
After our day at the Museum we wanted to celebrate with the season’s first grilling. I looked out the window and overheard Daddy-O tell the flock “don’t worry fellas, we’re not having lamb chops tonight!” Now that the snow has cleared from the deck, Tauzer was keeping watch not only on my mini sculptures but I think the yummy pin-wheels and ribs. Spring MUST be just around the corner –isn’t the aroma of BBQ supposed to bring on the good weather??
4 comments:
If you love NC pottery I'm sure you've heard of Pittsoboro-based potter Mark Hewitt. Check out this video interview with him about his exhibition at the Nasher. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4sCmbFbUpEo
Hewitt has worked on his pottery in North Carolina for nearly three decades. Hewitt draws inspiration from Asian and West African ceramics, and the native North Carolina potting traditions of Seagrove and the Catawba River valley.
funny about the lamb chops- I bet they were worried!
NY has nothing on you all!
Boy, I thought I was bad with pottery all over my back deck, but you have me beat with the flock there! I just love those things :)
that bbq pic is sooo funny...3 mins to town thats cool! glad you didn't miss it..
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