Thursday, July 19, 2007

Invisible City ... #59

Another of the interesting and challenging sculptures in our city environment ... this is the "Invisible City" by Anton Parsons. This view is looking east down Grey Street and the pedestrians give you a feel for the scale of the sculpture.

Dimensions:H 2200mm, W 1200mm
Location:Cnr Lambton Quay & Grey St
Materials: Stainless Steel
Date of installation: 2003

Presented to the city with assistance from the Jack and Emma Griffin Charitable Trust and the Wellington City Council. The stainless steel of this sculpture seems to glow with an inner light. The magnified Braille text suggests a message, but the artist chooses to deny us access, raising issues of communication in the contemporary world, and the difficult interface between the disabled and the rest of the community.

"Invisible City is an appropriate public work because it functions on several levels: Aesthetics – even without understanding that the dots on the two boxes are braille text, Invisible City is an aesthetically pleasing object – it doesn’t have to be read to be appreciated. Tactile – it is made to be touched. Surface – Invisible City is polished stainless steel, and reflects its surroundings. When looking at it you see a reflection of Wellington."
Anton Parsons

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

An interesting post today. The photo is great and the text is interesting.

Abraham Lincoln
Brookville Daily Photo

travelphilippines said...

hmmm i wonder what does the braille mean. i hope you'll know the answer someday hehe

Ann (MobayDP) said...

I too am quite frustratingly curious as to what the braille means. I suppose this is how the disabled must feel in a world that does not take into account their needs! They must feel as though they have been denied access.

jbworks said...

Ann .. I believe that was the scultpture's intent ... to challenge our thinking about access for "everyone" .. cheers