The Homecoming
November 21, 2008
His works are in almost every major city in the world--- including the Metropolitan Museum of Art, and MOMA. And now - the Meadowlands Park of South Orange.
Tony Smith, one of the most influential artists of the 20th century, was a native of South Orange and Time magazine once dubbed him “Master of the Monumentalists.”
The Lennie Pierro Memorial Arts Foundation is responsible for bringing Smith’s TAU-- a giant black painted steel sculpture-- home. The organization set out on this mission in 2002, created in honor of the late artist and teacher, co-founder of the Pierro Gallery, longtime Village resident Lennie Pierro.
“It was always his dream to have a sculpture by Tony Smith in honor of our famous native son,” said his wife Judy Wukitsch, president of the Foundation. The group began to create the possibilities seven years ago. They were overjoyed to see the flatbed truck arrive on Wednesday morning.
As the movers began to lift the first piece and place it on the newly cemented ground, onlookers watched with excitement. Hidden underneath the white plastic shrink-wrap was a 14 foot tall sculpture, one of only two created in the world. It took hours to precisely place the first piece of the sculpture in position as the crane prepared to lower the second piece on top.
“It’s a lot like being next to a mountain or natural formation. Even though it’s huge and monumental from far away, it’s also a very intimate experience when you walk around it,” says Susan Napack, secretary of the Foundation.
The sun began to set when the second piece was safely lowered and bolted into position. TAU’s journey from storage in upstate New York to a quiet bucolic pond in South Orange, NJ, was as smooth as the black paint on the giant sculpture itself. Official dedication ceremonies and celebrations will occur in Spring 2009, but we suggest you visit the site now and have your own monumental experience.
This NJ My Way column was authored and photographed by contributor Erica Emmich.
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