Nashville Civic Design Center Case Study: Public Art Benches Cities Researched 1)
San Jose, CA
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Bellevue, WA
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Greensboro, NC
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Seattle, WA
San Jose, CA website: http://www.riesniemi.com/pages/pubart_vta.html This 600 foot long bus Island is adjacent to a Light Rail Stop. There are a few small bus shelters on the island, and I was commissioned to build a series of 4 sculptural benches for this location. The light rail stop is named for the Great Mall, which from 1955 to 1981 was a Ford Motor company factory. I used imagery from cars made in the factory for these benches- There are 2 hubcap benches each 8 feet in diameter and about 6 feet tall, made from forged and fabricated stainless steel. These are based on the spinner hubcaps from 1960's Mustangs made here. There are also 2 camshaft benches each 26 feet long and 4 feet tall. These derive their design from internal engine parts- camshafts and crankshafts, as well as tailfins from some of the 50's and 60's cars made in the plant.These benches also feature the words "zero" and "one", written in some of the 125 languages spoken in the schools in this area, and relating to the binary codes used by some of the local companies, like Cisco, Apple, Ebay, and others. Forged, fabricated and electropolished stainless steel. Commissioned by the Santa Clarita Valley Transit Authority
Nashville Civic Design Center • Urban Design / Policy Brief • Public Art - Benches • www.civicdesigncenter.org
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Bellevue, WA website: http://www.ci.bellevue.wa.us/public-art-benches.htm Bellevue's latest public art installation is not just for looking at. Eight vividly colored steel benches along 140th Avenue, framed by ornate trellises, panels and canopies, offer nice places to sit as well. To celebrate the benches crafted by Snohomish artist Karen Guzak, the city will host a self-guided walking tour of the installations Saturday, 10 a.m. to noon. The tour will begin at Sammamish High School, 100 140th Ave. SE, where free refreshments will be provided and Guzak will be on hand to talk about her work.
Nashville Civic Design Center • Urban Design / Policy Brief • Public Art - Benches • www.civicdesigncenter.org
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The benches are located along a one-mile stretch of 140th, in the Lake Hills neighborhood, between Northeast Seventh Street and Southeast Seventh Street. The public art was commissioned to complement major improvements the city made to the thoroughfare, including sidewalks and medians. Guzak's pieces are made of one-eighth-inch thick steel plates cut, welded or bolted together, and covered with a powder coating paint. The artist drew inspiration from the street's landscaping, and each piece has a seasonal theme: the quince benches are for spring, rose for summer, vine maple for fall and magnolia for winter. The Magnolia bench.Students at Sammamish High helped select quotes to be embedded in plaques at the base of each bench. "A perfect summer day is when the sun is shining, the breeze is blowing, the birds are singing, and the lawn mower is broken," is one, from writer James Dent. The colorful benches are part of Bellevue's Public Art Program, which purchases and commissions art for the City with the advice of the Bellevue Arts Commission. For the next seven years, the program will focus on using public art to define and enhance an urban walkway from City Hall to the waterfront at Meydenbauer Bay. The city works with neighborhoods to commission public art that expresses their unique character.
Greensboro, NC website: http://www.downtowngreensboro.org/citylight/go/public-art-news-and-record-bench This functional News & Record Bench bench was created by artist Jim Gallucci and is located in front of the News & Record corporate office at 200 E. Market Street.
Nashville Civic Design Center • Urban Design / Policy Brief • Public Art - Benches • www.civicdesigncenter.org
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Seattle, WA website: http://www.paulsorey.com/treeBench/treeBench.htm
Nashville Civic Design Center • Urban Design / Policy Brief • Public Art - Benches • www.civicdesigncenter.org
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