It’s big and eye-catching. And depending on the point of view, it’s either whimsical and playful, or inappropriate and kitschy.
“Slice” hasn’t been installed yet, but the 20-foot-tall, steel sculpture of a piece of Swiss cheese planned for a Windsor roundabout is getting a reaction.
“We will be known as the cheesy downtown,” said Town Councilman Dominic Foppoli, who cast the lone vote against accepting the work by the late artist Robert Ellison.
“Are we from Wisconsin?” was among the comments on social media, said Windsor Mayor Deb Fudge, who nevertheless was “honored” to get something from Ellison, the late Penngrove artist whose works are on display in some prominent Sonoma County locations.
The metallic, yellow-colored likeness of a giant piece of cheese will be installed in two to three months at the new roundabout on Old Redwood Highway and Windsor Road.
The council on a 4-1 vote approved the placement of the sculpture in late December.
“There’s a lot of negative input about ‘Slice’ from people who’ve never seen it,” Rhoann Ponseti, chair of the Public Art Advisory Commission, said last week. But it will be fun and playful and an opportunity to get “a world-class piece of sculpture.”
Art as the saying goes, is in the art of the beholder, Ponseti noted, so “some people will like it and some won’t.”
Ellison, who died in 2012, was known for his fanciful works and colorful palette.
They include “Sun Zone,” a piece reminiscent of ice cream cones at the entrance to the Sonoma County Administration Center, “Cherry Soda” in Petaluma’s theater district and “Bar Note Bench” at Sonoma State University’s Green Music Center.
He produced the scissored “Renaissance,” which stood for years at Old Courthouse Square and is now at Cornerstone in Sonoma, and “Sweep,” which adorns the reflecting pool at Spreckels Performing Arts Center in Rohnert Park.
The Windsor art commission last year unanimously recommended “Slice” for the roundabout after sifting through 43 applications from artists.
The town agreed to refurbish and rent the piece for three years from the Voigt Family Sculpture Foundation for $10,000, with an option to spend $20,000 more if it chooses to purchase it.
Last week, the art commission was updated on the status of the sculpture, which needs welding, grinding and paint to fix some weathering. It currently sits at the Voigt property in Geyserville.
Town Councilman Mark Millan, liaison to the Windsor art committee, said “I like the piece. I think it will be interesting.”
But some residents are concerned it will distract motorists who might also be blinded momentarily by the sun’s rays streaming through the large “eyes” of the cheese sculpture.
It is going to be placed to the north of a roundabout that had another piece installed last year: Bruce Johnson’s “Offering,” a tripod of salvaged old-growth redwood with a great copper boulder resting on top. It represents a gesture of nature offering a gift, according to the artist.
Millan said he looks forward to having an increasing number of sculptures around town and changing their locations every few years. “Slice” he said, could be relocated to Keiser Park after the town buys it.
Our editors found this article on this site using Google and regenerated it for our readers.
