Client: Town of Chestertown

Location: Chestertown, MD, United States

Completion date: 2017

Project Team

Artist

David Hess

Hess Industries, LLC

Other

Alex Castro

Artist

Eli Hess

Client

Kees de Mooy

Town of Chestertown

Industry Resource

Herr and Sacco

Overview

Completed in October of 2017. Located in Wilmer, Park, Chestertown, MD. Dimensions: 22’ x 32’ x 40’. Materials: stainless steel, grass berms
The two sculptures, sited at the Park’s entrance, were designed to evoke nautical imagery of a wave and sail and are installed amidst earthworks meant to simulate a rolling sea framing views of the Chester River. The structural framing for this sculpture is hidden beneath the dirt and grass built up to make these sculptures interactive, allowing children and adults to run up, climb over, slide down, and explore their surfaces.

Goals

5 years ago, the Town of Chestertown published a Public Art Master Plan with funding from an NEA Our Town Grant. The Master Plan outlined the town's desire to commission a piece of public sculpture that also served as a playscape for children. The themes and scale of this project allow children and adults to engage with public art in a way that they otherwise are not able in their everyday lives. Hopefully, this will be the first of many public art projects for the Town.

Process

I began collaborating with the Town of Chestertown following the release of the Public Art Master Plan in 2015. I submitted a proposal in response to their RFP for a "children's playscape" as outlined in their Master Plan. My proposal highlighted the nautical history of their community, all the while creating a foothold to launch their public art program. I was chosen by the town, and began to plan fabrication. I contracted with a fabricator to assist with the massive plate rolling necessary for this project. Once fabricated, we trucked the sculptures to the site and installed them onto footings poured by the town in Wilmer Park. Once bolted down, we backfilled the sculptures and surrounding landscape with over 20 truckloads of dirt and topsoil. Finally, we put sod down to lock the earthen berms into place.