University Community Tours Arts on the Point

By Elizabeth Muti

In conjunction with the inaugural festivities, art professor Paul Tucker hosted two tours of the Arts on the Point sculpture park during the week of September 23. Established three years ago, the park consists of ten sculptures from around the globe, on loan from various collections. “We didn’t want to be trapped with a specific look and wanted to keep a contemporary feel,” said Tucker. The pieces will rotate as new ones arrive on campus and the present ones are sent to art museums, other universities, or back to their owners.

The first stop on the tour was McCormack Hall to view the large lobster figure that is also a coffin. Along with nine other creative coffins, “Lobster” is on loan from Los Angeles art dealer, Ernie Wolfe. Created by three artists from Ghana, West Africa, the coffins were designed to suit the personalities of the deceased.

The largest piece in the park is entitled “Huru,” which means both “hello” and “goodbye” in the Aboriginal language of Australia. Fittingly, the sculpture is located at the entrance of campus. Made entirely of steel, weighing 32,000 pounds and at a height of 45 feet, “Huru” is hard to miss.

One of the most easily overlooked sculptures is located in one of the most heavily traveled locations on campus. Sitting on the lawn between Wheatley and McCormack Halls is the piece “Hero at Evening” by artist Bill Tucker. At first glance, this sculpture looks like a white rock, but to the careful observer it resembles a human head.

“The students and alumni on the tour were wonderfully responsive,” Tucker remarked. “Even without an art background, they were able to recognize the poetry in Sol Lewitt’s “Double Cubes” and the mysteries of Dennis Oppenheim’s “Searchburst.” It was a real pleasure.”

Arts on the Point is open to the public. Guided tours will soon become a regular feature, but until then, interested onlookers can be guided by labels for each sculpture that provide information about the artist and the work.

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