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| Robert Ressler |
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Rivers
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Completion Date:
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1998
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Medium:
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Wood Sculpture
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Dimensions:
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n/a
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Location:
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P.S. 233
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Address:
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9301 Avenue B, Brooklyn
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Architect:
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School Construction Authority
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Sponsor Agency:
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Board of Education
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Design Agency:
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School Construction
Authority
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Working with the children's own imagery, sculptor Robert Ressler designed and fabricated three hard-wood panels depicting the poetry of Langston Hughes:
I've known rivers:
I've known rivers ancient as the world
and older than the flow of human
blood in human veins.
My soul has grown deep like the rivers.
In workshops with educator/children's author, Eileen
Ressler, the children dove into these and other lines of Hughes' poetry. One of
their assignments was to go home, dream about their river and draw it. The
children delivered over a hundred pictures to Ressler who then translated them
into sculpture by handcarving their designs into exuberantly painted panels that
now hang in the auditorium of the school. To insure that Rivers would
not only be representative of one generation of children, one "river" would be
an empty frame, on which new artworks, stories and poems could be continually
exhibited. For the children and the artist, Rivers was an exciting and inclusive project, celebrating the children's creativity and the inspiration of Langston Hughes' poetry.
About the Artist...
Since 1988, Robert Ressler has been creating large scale works for public sites throughout New York City. With the support of various municipal agencies, art organizations and local Community Boards, he has exhibited sculpture at sites as diverse as the Jewish Museum, Prospect Park in Brooklyn, Times Square, Riverbank State Park in Harlem and Wave Hill, the world renowned gardens in Riverdale. Works such as Mantis, an 18 foot emerald bug recently acquired by the City of New York for the Staten Island Children's Museum, 3 Of Us, a revolving sculptural bench and Armadillo were created particularly with young viewers in mind who clamor over, climb in and whirl around these artworks enthusiastically. Inclusive and accessible, these public works have enjoyed popular and critical approval through their color, imagery and the sensuality of the wood.
Artist Quote...
"My work to date has been crafted by hand, drawing its imagery both from urban experience and nature. These works have sought to engage the viewer as both audience and participants. Consequently, the idea of collaborating with the kids of P.S. 233 to create a permanent work to be replenished by future students' imaginings, is exciting to say to the least." -- Ressler
