Now through June 29, 2021 GUSHER is perfectly placed on the sculpture plinth in the Fairfax Parkade. With the newly repaved parking lot, across the street from the RINO gas station, on Sir Francis Drake Boulevard, the east–west arterial road in Marin, at this crossroads, petroleum is definitely the air.
The challenges are many when planning for a large-scale sculpture in a public place. The Parks and Rec review board are, of course, concerned with stability and security; liability and insurance. But I met all of the challenges. On a metal base covered with black plastic I firmly mounted an armature reminiscent of an oil derrick that is spewing, gushing black plastic bags. Bolted and bracketed, only gale force winds could topple this structure.
It’s a bold move to put something up in a public place — subject to the opinions of passersby— some art aficionados but mostly not. The opportunity to speak to a non-art audience, someone unsuspecting who might just be rushing to Coffee Roasters to grab a coffee discovers GUSHER and a different kind of wake-up call. It’s this possibility of a chance encounter with aesthetic arrest that makes siting an artwork outside the traditional gallery/museum so appealing.
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