Client: Huntington Center / Toledo Arts Commission

Overview

RE-Surgence, Huntington Center Arena, Toledo, Ohio
GMW Public Art Team – Ganz, Mueller, Williams
Re-claimed post consumer plastics donated by the public and thrift store hunting.
Aluminum expanded metal, LED lighting 60' x 8' x 2'
RE-Surgence depicts a topographical abstraction of the Maumee River as it flows through downtown Toledo.

Goals

Staying consistent with the green, LEED certified architectural design by the Collaborative Firm, Toledo, Ohio, we chose to use reclaimed materials as the focus of our proposal. Compositionally, our sculpture is site - specific to the escalator wall. As arena go-ers enter the street level lobby, they must ride the escalator up to the seating concourse. We chose this unique moment to engage the viewer, as the escalator ride gives the public an opportunity to read and travel their way through the sculpture river at a slow, escalator cadence.

Process

Our team worked with local entities; the public library, Toledo Art Museum, Bowling Green Community Center, local schools etc. to secure "drop off points" for collection barrels. These barrels allowed community members to donate unwanted, post- consumer plastics. (for example; kitchen utensils, toys, food containers.) The intention was to give new life to otherwise mundane objects destined for the landfill. Additionally, local residents could potentially seek out their plastic item in the collective whole, once the sculpture was installed. A second element of community involvement was a partnership with the local Imagination Station. This downtown children's science museum provided us with an open lab space during the summer fabrication aspect of the project. Working on the public art in a public space not only promoted the new artwork going into the nearby Arena, but it exposed museum goers to recycling, the study of their local river, and allowed them to take part in the process.

Additional Information

National Juried Commission Call, administered by the Arts Commission of Greater Toledo Office of Public Art