Constellation (sculpture series)

Not to be confused with Constellation (sculpture).
Constellation
Map
ArtistTad Savinar
Year2000 (2000)
TypeSculpture
MediumBronze
LocationPortland, Oregon, United States
Coordinates45°31′51″N 122°39′13″W / 45.5308°N 122.6536°W / 45.5308; -122.6536
OwnerCity of Portland and Multnomah County Public Art Collection courtesy of the Regional Arts & Culture Council

Constellation is a series of outdoor 2000 bronze sculptures by American artist Tad Savinar, installed at Holladay Park in northeast Portland, Oregon, United States. The work's three "distinct elements" include:

  • Constellation (Vase of Flowers) or Constellation: Flowers from a Neighborhood Garden,[1] a slender vase of daisies, hydrangeas and other flowers;
  • Constellation (Molecule) or Constellation: Isolated Molecule for a Good Neighborhood,[2] an abstract molecule representing a "good neighborhood"; and
  • Constellation: Neighborhood Gardiner or simply Constellation, a female figure carrying gardening shears.[3][4]
  • Vase of Flowers
    Vase of Flowers
  • Molecule
    Molecule
  • Neighborhood Gardiner
    Neighborhood Gardiner

According to the Regional Arts & Culture Council, which administers the installation, "This project attempts to illustrate the connection between the personal front yard garden and the civic park/garden."[3] The figure depicts a neighborhood activist (Carolyn Marks Backs or Carolyn Marks-Bax, depending on the source).[3][4] The decision to visualize backs and the objects depicted in the molecule were chosen by the Sullivan Gulch Neighborhood Association. Objects include a bagel, coffee mug, garden tool, house, milk carton, school, a family, and trees.[2] Constellation was funded by the City of Portland's Percent for Art program.[3] It is part of the City of Portland and Multnomah County Public Art Collection courtesy of the Regional Arts & Culture Council.[5]

  1. ^ "Constellation: Flowers from a Neighborhood Garden, (sculpture)". Smithsonian Institution. Archived from the original on March 7, 2016. Retrieved May 31, 2015.
  2. ^ a b "Constellation: Isolated Molecule for a Good Neighborhood, (sculpture)". Smithsonian Institution. Archived from the original on March 7, 2016. Retrieved May 31, 2015.
  3. ^ a b c d Regional Arts & Culture Council:
  4. ^ a b "Constellation: Neighborhood Gardiner, (sculpture)". Smithsonian Institution. Archived from the original on March 7, 2016. Retrieved May 31, 2015.
  5. ^ cultureNOW: