Burlington Sculpture Park: Six Sculptures Approved

BURLINGTON, MA — After years of planning, Burlington resident Jon Sachs's plan for a sculpture park in town will soon come to fruition. The Sculpture Park Committee's plan was approved in March by the Board of Selectmen, and the Committee has selected six sculptures. As soon as it is safe to do so, they plan to install them on and near the Burlington Common.

The sculptures are all 6 to 9 feet tall. Five will sit in the field between the police headquarters and the Grandview Tavern, while the sixth will sit on the corner of the common. The sculptures are:

• Global Warming, by Nikita Zigura
• Truth #1, by Peter Dellert
• Next Stop Shibuya, by Philip Marshall
• American Dog, by Dale Rogers
• Follow Your Heart, by Mark Wholey
• Endeavor, by Chris Plaisted

"On March 9th, the Burlington Board of Selectmen approved the plan to bring a sculpture park to Burlington," Sachs said. "That was just before the pandemic became so severe that all normal activity halted."

But the coronavirus is not stopping their plans.

"We are going ahead with our plans to bring the sculpture park to life, just as soon as it is safe," he continued. "In fact, we feel that something as colorful and uplifting at this park will be particularly welcome after this long, necessary period of social distancing."

Patch asked the artists for photos and comments on their works. Responses we received are below:

Philip Marshall:

"Although executed as an abstract sculpture, now completed, it reminds me of my rush hour experiences on the Tokyo Metro and commuter trains. Being crushed together, often face-to-face with total strangers, too squeezed together to even breath properly, requires a mental preservation of personal space that is not possible physically. The outward curve of these two elements suggests to me the mental separation despite physical proximity that Tokyo, like almost all large cities, requires if one is to maintain one’s own individuality. Having been compressed into a railway car at Shinjuku, and being pushed further in at each stop, hearing “The next stop is Shibuya”, my destination, was a welcome announcement."

Chris Plaisted:

"My sculpture is called Endeavour.
This is a new direction for me as this sculpture is, although abstract, based on an actual object. In this case the
HMS Endeavour, also known as HM Bark Endeavour, which was a British Royal Navy research vessel that Lieutenant James Cook commanded to Australia and New Zealand on his first voyage of discovery from 1769 to 1771. The Endeavour was a flat-bottomed designed ship which made her well-suited to sailing in shallow waters and allowed her to be beached for loading and unloading of cargo and for basic repairs without requiring a dry dock."

Mark Wholey:

"Follow Your Heart” is more than the essence of creativity. It is a statement of courage and compassion, where one can identify as well as interpret. It is a Valentine to you. It is faith in oneself, your intuition, your inner dreamer. It is the feeling
of handing a flower to your first/fresh/current love. It is a picture for John Lennon's "Imagine." It is the idealist youth from 1960’s. The confidence of Michelangelo’s "David." It’s a guy that will float off into space if he doesn’t pay attention to where he’s going. The foolish stride of a dreamer. The foolish stride of naiveté. The Tarot’s Fool. A tragedy waiting to happen. Pride going before a fall. Curiosity diverging from an axiom. Preparing for a leap of faith. Confidence.

Cathy, as you see there are a lot of ways I look at it.

For something more concrete:
There are two parts to the sculpture.

Line and form. Essential artistic elements play against each other. Each symbolic of their iconic roles. The block is stability made up or right angles, proven strong. Think: box, house, building, institutions. A ream of writing paper. Anyway you look at it it is “square.” Like dullsville, man.

The cartoon figure is nothing but fluid line. The figure can barely contain itself on the precarious stage. Chest is full of pride that matches the stride. Hand on hip theatrically posed. Head held high an elastic arm reaching beyond anatomy holding on to a symbol of emotion. He/she knows he has the attention of the audience. She’s a hippy off to see the world.

It’s singular bright red color uses the surroundings for contrast. In a location such as Burlington, the green of the park becomes the red's compliment. This leads to the subliminal concept of yin and yang. A duality is played over and over which, in my estimation, adds to the tension a sculpture needs to resonate. To come alive. It is a sculpture that is in conflict with itself just as we are in conflict with ourselves when we are about to take that stride into trusting ourselves beyond logic.

Christopher Huffaker can be reached at 412-265-8353 or chris.huffaker@patch.com.