Features

Panel Gives Qualified Approval To Spaceship Earth Sculpture: By RICHARD BRENNEMAN

Friday September 24, 2004

Berkeley’s Public Art Committee gave a weak thumbs up to the 175-ton, 20-feet-high quartzite and bronze memorial to the late Berkeley-born environmentalist David Brower. 

The memorial was bankrolled by Brian and Jennifer Maxwell, creators of the Berkeley-based Power Bar sports nutrition giant. Mayor Tom Bates has said he hopes to install the work at the Berkeley Marina.  

But the committee’s two-one vote to accept the piece was heavily qualified, with proponents unsure where to place the controversial creation by Finno-American sculptor Eino. 

“I don’t think this is a very good piece,” said Bonnie Hughes, one of three civic arts commissioners who attended the Public Arts Committee meeting Tuesday morning. “I have a lot of problems with this.” 

Hughes cast the lone vote for rejection. 

But even Jos Sances, committee chair, and Arts Commissioner Chair David Snippen expressed reservations. 

The lone member of the public to speak at the meeting told the committee that “when I saw that globe and the figure of a white man on top of it, I immediately thought of the image of the white man dominating the world.” 

A similar complaint had been expressed in writing by Peter Selz, founder of the Berkeley Art Museum and a former curator of the Museum of Modern Art in New York, who called the work another “general on horseback.” 

Richard Duane, a lawyer who represents Jennifer Maxwell and the estate of Brian Maxwell, who died earlier this year, objected to Selz’s imagery. 

“It’s not a general on a horse,” Duane said. “When I see it, it makes me think of what Brower was all about.” 

Nobody’s ever seen the finished work, which remains disassembled in a San Francisco warehouse. 

All three panelists wondered if the Berkeley waterfront was the best site for the massive work. 

While both Hughes and Snippen expressed aesthetic objections, Commissioner Sances said “to me, aesthetics are in the eye of the beholder, so that’s not our role.” 

“We’re not a hundred percent in favor of it, obviously,” said Snippen. 

The main reason for the yes votes seemed to be the feeling that because the city couldn’t afford its own monument to the noted environmentalist, the Maxwell offering was the best alternative. 

The decision was handed on to the full commission, which met the following evening. Because there wasn’t time to schedule a vote—which requires public notice beforehand—no final action could be taken until the commission’s meeting on Oct. 27. 

Commissioners were presented with strongly held views during their Wednesday evening session, said Snippen. 

Only Duane and Ken Brower, the environmentalist’s eldest son, spoke in favor of the statue. 

Speaking in opposition were Marina residents Janet Cobb and Paul Caner and his spouse. Selz and Carole Schimmerling also spoke out against the work. 

Snippen said he is hoping for input from the Waterfront Commission and eventually for an opportunity for the two panels to exchange views on the sculpture and his hopes to create a waterfront sculpture walk. 

“It’s also hard to make a decision without seeing the sculpture. All we’ve seen are some sketches and computer renderings. Before we vote, I’d like to see the disassembled work,” he said. “I think a site visit is very appropriate.” 

The pieces are currently stored in a warehouse in the San Francisco Presidio. 

“Ultimately, the commission will make its final recommendation to the City Council, which will have the final say. Before we vote, I’d like to have as much public input as possible,” Snippen said. 

With Mayor Tom Bates a strong proponent of the blue-and-bronze creation, Commissioner Hughes said she feels approval is a foregone conclusion.›