With its effort to embrace more public art, Claremont McKenna College (CMC) recently finalized its fourth public art installation. This one consists of four pieces in total, two of which were commissioned specifically for CMC. The installation was a gift from alum Christopher Walker ’69, a founding partner at Leonard Green & Partners, a private equity firm based in Los Angeles and the chair of the Public Art Committee. Walker and the Committee unanimously voted for Bove’s proposal, stating, “among the four proposals…the panel was clearly drawn to Carol’s creative vision for the CMC campus, voting unanimously for its approval.”
Walker commissioned internationally-renowned artist Carol Bove to create the art. According to CMC’s press release, these installations mark the first time Bove’s work has been featured on a college campus. They are also her largest public permanent installations. “The sculptures—two created for CMC and two previously exhibited to great acclaim in New York and Leeds, England—are a mixture of found metal, steel beams, petrified wood, and painted and polished stainless-steel tubing. Together they comprise Bove’s most extensive permanent public installation to date,” reads CMC’s statement.
According to Walker, “One significant feature of the sculptures…is that there will be thousands of students who will see them. They will not be tucked away in someone’s yard.”
Bove’s sculptures are not the first or only art works on CMC’s campus; CMC writes that “Bove’s four sculptures join three other significant public artworks installed in recent years on campus: a painted and neon tube abstract mural by Mary Weatherford in the Marian Miner Cook Athenaeum, a 40-foot white painted stainless steel totem between Appleby and Phillips halls by the late artist Ellsworth Kelly, and a sculpture of streetlights and benches in front of Roberts Pavilion by the late conceptual artist Chris Burden.”
Cretaceous
The four pieces of art are described below:
“Four Loups”: 267 inches in length by 79 inches high and 34 inches wide, this tubular glyph looks like it’s floating in space. They’re made of stainless-steel and is coated with sealant and liquid urethane. One of the pieces created for CMC.
“The Enigma of Pleasure”: The other piece created for CMC. 1,300 pounds of rusted scrap metal and a folded and crushed steel beam painted orange with a polished black disc. This piece stands 80 inches tall and is 74 inches long and 46 inches wide.
“Cretaceous”: Made from rusted low carbon steel and ancient petrified wood. It was first shown at an exhibition in Italy in 2014.
“Lingam”: Also made from ancient petrified wood and was first showcased in 2015 in London as part of Ms. Bove’s solo presentation.
Photo: Claremont McKenna College
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