A shark-riding child and a brightly colored abstract art piece should gain temporary placement in city parks, the Encinitas Commission for the Arts recommended Monday.
The commission’s 5-0 vote, with Commissioner Niyati Kadakia absent and Commissioner Carla Roemer recusing herself, means that the proposal will now be sent to the City Council, with its vote scheduled for Nov. 20.
Under the plan the council will consider, Leucadia Oaks Park would get “Neptune Jr.,” a 250-pound sculpture of a child riding a “realistic-looking” hammerhead shark, while Sun Vista Park would gain “Wingman,” a 225-pound, multi-colored abstract piece made of welded steel. Both pieces would be on temporary display for two to three years through a loan agreement with the artists.
This is the second time this year that the arts commission has made sculpture recommendations for the two parks. Last spring, commissioners picked five pieces for temporary display in five city locations under a new program designed to expand the city’s public art offerings. Three of their choices were approved by the City Council and have been installed, but the proposed choice for Sun Vista — a whimsical piece featuring green figures with mushroom cap heads — and the one for Leucadia Oaks Park — a metal person holding a cell phone — were both rejected by the council.
Using a rapid review process, city arts officials came up with a replacement list of options, and that’s what was before the commission Monday. Commissioners said they were keen to get art into the two parks as soon as possible and stressed that these are temporary sculpture displays, not permanent ones.
“We should definitely accept the recommendations and move the process forward,” Commissioner Robin Fator said as they reviewed the results of a recent community survey where people gave the two new sculpture options high rankings.
However, at least one commissioner and one member of the public weren’t thrilled with the survey results. Former arts commissioner Kathleen Lees said she had only seen photographs of the proposed sculptures, not the actual pieces in person, but to her neither of the two options looked appropriate for a city park.
“Just because somebody offers it to you, there’s no obligation to take it,” said Lees, who previously worked in the art acquisition field for more than 40 years.
She added that she also thought the shark sculpture might violate city public art display guidelines because the child on the back of the shark is naked.
Current arts Commissioner Jennifer Marakovits said she too was “a little hesitant” about the naked child situation, but others on the commission said they didn’t have a problem with it.
Commission Chair Katy Fox said her 5-year-old son would love the sculpture because it’s a shark and it will slowly spin in the wind. Commissioner Vicki Campbell said she preferred picking a different sculpture — a stone man titled “Hermes” for Leucadia Oaks Park because it ties in with the area’s Greek place names — but said the shark rider’s nudity wasn’t an issue for her, given that the person is only a baby and the sculpture will be high up on a pole.
Selecting pieces, particularly for these sites, isn’t easy, commissioners said. The commission chair said the Sun Vista Park’s proposed display spot — a location near the intersection of Rancho Santa Fe Road and Avenida la Posta — couldn’t have a spinning shark statue because that would distract passing motorists. A shiny metal statue also would be a problem because of light reflection issues, she said.
Pieces also need to be substantial in size and be made of a sturdy material, Fox added, mentioning that one artist’s proposal for a foot-and-a-half-tall ceramic piece wouldn’t have worked in the park locations.
Originally Published:
