Cultivating Community
A public art sculpture that is part of the Alum Rock Cultural History Corridor located in the Tropicana shopping center on the plaza in front of Bank of America at the southwest corner of Story and King Rd. in East San Jose, CA. Installed on June 6, 2011.
I was commissioned by the City of San Jose’s Public Art Program in 2009 to create a site-specific public art project that addressed the agricultural history of East San Jose. The sculpture I designed references a ‘spring-tooth harrow’ – a traditional farm implement that was once pulled behind a horse ,and later a tractor, to rake and turn the soil. The chassis, or frame of the piece, is made of fabricated steel and the arms that mimic ‘tines’ are cast bronze. The City of San Jose selected ten community members who are or were once actively involved in the agricultural industry to participant in the project. I took molds of the participants' right arm to create wax patterns that were then cast in bronze. The piece is intended to illustrate and honor the human hand behind the machine. For more information please read the fact sheet at the bottom of the page.
