December 18, 2003

Public art projects topic of community meeting

By Kymberli W. Brady
Staff Writer

After numerous community meetings during the past year to discuss the Almaden Library/Community Center project, Vice Mayor Pat Dando and members of the San Jose Public Art Program met with community members in an official kick-off on Dec.15 at the Almaden Community Center. They introduced the three artists selected to provide murals, glasswork and sculpture that will grace the new building. The meeting also included architectural updates as well as details regarding the Fontana art project.

“The most exciting public art projects are occurring in District 10,” commented Vice Mayor Pat Dando. “I know some of us along the way were getting a little anxious and would rather have seen the finished products the first night we met. But I think now we all see that it did make sense to go through a community process. Quite frankly, there were many things added that I would never have thought of.”

Muralists Mark Evans and Charlie Brown from San Francisco, sculptor Lisa Reinertson from Davis, and glass artist Ray King from Philadelphia were on hand to meet with Public Art Task force members and residents. They discussed the varying aspects of the sophisticated Almaden community and gathered more personalized insight for their design process.

During the meeting, several comments were discussed in an effort to shed light on how the artwork would incorporate and embrace the true feeling and identity of the Almaden Valley as well as the 90,000 residents in District 10. That group includes literary heroes, social concerns, family values, education, local landscape, historical significance, technology, progress and enthusiasm for life.

“We wanted to have the artists talk with the community about what their stories were, what this community is all about and what’s important to them so we could get to the goals of the project,” explained JenJoy Roybal with the San Jose Public Art Program. “We’ll send them to work with all the information that we’ve gathered so they can come up with some concepts. Then we’ll bring them back to the community.”

While the murals and glasswork will be housed inside the facility, Reinertson’s three-dimensional bronze sculptures will most likely be installed in the courtyard area and share space with the existing redwood trees to encourage visitors to sit and spend time with the artwork.

“I’m glad you have an appreciation for the redwood trees,” said Dando. “We put a stake in the ground in the very beginning of this project and said we were going to protect those trees.”

“I’m extremely excited about working with all three of these artists,” added architect Mark Shotz. “I think this project is really going to benefit from the quality of work that’s going to be in here through the public art program. It’s nice to be able to work with communities that recognize the importance of public art.”

Architectural update
With the library officially closed and the community center slated to shut down in March, development plans will soon start to spring from the 283 sheets of architectural drawings and two volumes of specifications. The project is expected to be one of the grandest facilities in San Jose, enhanced with colorful, symbolic representations of the Almaden community’s history and diversity.

Shotz announced that they were able to trim approximately six months from the construction schedule. The revised official opening date is set for January 2006.

While the new, larger library is under construction, staff and collection will be located at the new Vineland Branch, scheduled to open Saturday, Jan. 17 at 1450 Blossom Hill Road. A grand opening celebration is planned for 11 a.m. that day.

In the meantime, efforts are underway to find a new, temporary home for the Community Center, slated to close in March for an estimated 18 months. “We think we found a couple of locations that will work well,” admitted Dando. “It’s not going to be quite as you know it now, but within a short period of time, you’re going to have a wonderful new building. We’re trying to make do and continue to provide as many of the programs as we can.”

In keeping with the community’s notion that this wasn’t just a building on a busy intersection, but rather a design where the park and the building would interact with one another, Shotz said they incorporated some pieces of their own. Abstract trees, carpet patterns and butterfly mobiles are located throughout the facility. “We tried to bring that spirit into the building in an effort to make it a great place to participate in,” he replied. “They are fun pieces that will help make this place different from any other.”

Fontana Park sculpture
Roybal says the sculpture that will pay tribute to fallen officer Jeffrey Fontana is currently in design development and is on track for fabrication pending final approval. Community members were asked to fill out comment forms based on the mock sculpture shown and offer suggestions for the final piece.

“We’re very satisfied with this round,” added Roybal. “The artist really responded to all the comments on our surveys and is very excited to get this work going. With this round, we want to make sure that the community is contributing something that they will feel proud to put into that park.”

The sculpture of a police officer in Fontana’s likeness, sitting on a bench with a young boy and a dog, is expected to replace one of the two benches near the memorial plaque at Fontana Park. The official installation is scheduled for mid May to coincide with Fontana’s birthday. “It sounds like they’re planning something pretty spectacular,” Roybal added.

The Almaden Branch Library closed Dec. 14 for approximately two years. For more information, log on to www.newsanjoselibraries.com or call the Branch Library Development team at 794-1400.