My first impression of the Seattle Art Museum’s new sculpture park was, “That’s a long way up!” When you are walking it though, it really doesn’t seem like such a challenge. The slope is gentle and there is plenty to look at along the way. Elisabeth, Ryan, Britta and I entered by Pier 70, so the first sculpture we saw was Louise Bourgeois’s Eye Benches, which have a very Naguchi feel. The benches are simple, elegant and do indeed look right at you–an excellent introduction.

Moving along the trail a pop-ish fountain piece made up of giant letters, Love and Loss by Roy McMakin caught our attention. I stuck my hand in to grab a quarter so Ryan could make a wish.

Going up the hill the next piece that really struck me was the Teresita Fernandez Seattle Cloud Cover. Its colors are so vibrant, while the holes form a pattern that make you wonder what you’re missing. The shadow is worth viewing, turning the ground into a surreal pixilated playground of connect the dots. The others were not so impressed, so we continued on, getting a brief but enticing glimpse of Claus Oldenburg’s Eraser, Scale X before continuing to Alexander Calder’s Eagle, which I think has already been reviewed enough.

Our next stop was Beverly Pepper’s Persephone Unbound, which I personally found to be wretched. It was stiff, blocky, altogether lacking in movement, which is not what I think of when I think of Persephone’s story, or really anything unbound. It looked like she was trapped and miserable, a different part of the story altogether. Pepper’s Perre’s Ventaglio III was better, using mirrored surfaces and a strong cobalt blue to make you think of summer, pools, and the artifice of man-made living.

Finally we came to the Piece de resisitance, Richard Serra’s Wake. Welll worth the hype. This piece references so many different things you’d get bored if I listed them all, but they are definitely not boring to think about. Old English mazes and rusty boat hulls are among some of my favorite allusions. The media has covered the graffiti to this piece extensively, and it’s true, it’s obnoxious. But this is public art, and public art has to stand up to the general public. Serra is already famous for pieces that don’t play well with others, so I just try to think of the tags as the revenge of those people who couldn’t stand to eat lunch with Tilted Arc. It does make it more humorous even if I don’t care that Justin loves Carrie 4-ever.

The Paccar Pavilion at the top was interesting, with a huge confusing mural of Seattle, and some really cool eggish chairs that Elisabeth and I just had to try out. We did not sample the culinary offerings, but went to Pike’s Place for lunch, so I can’t review the SAM Taste Cafe, which looked like a typical burger stand.

Upon reflection, I thoroughly enjoyed the sculpture park, and when I go back, I would really like to get their docent’s side of the story since I feel a little like Rosemary Ponekanti, who writes without the benefit of our insider information. I am also looking foward to the closer look at SAM we’ll all get this fall.

Web Rescources:

for a virtual tour of all the great sculpture at the Seattle Art Museum’s new Olympic Sculpture Park visit: http://www.seattleartmuseum.org/visit/OSP/default.asp