{"id":60268,"date":"2019-05-28T07:00:56","date_gmt":"2019-05-28T11:00:56","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/?p=60268"},"modified":"2019-05-28T12:52:26","modified_gmt":"2019-05-28T16:52:26","slug":"understanding-ron-arads-new-public-art-at-yonge-and-bloor","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/2019\/05\/28\/understanding-ron-arads-new-public-art-at-yonge-and-bloor\/","title":{"rendered":"Understanding Ron Arad’s new public art at Yonge and Bloor"},"content":{"rendered":"

Outside of One Bloor East, two towering cylindrical figures slink around one another. The sculpture\u2019s reflective steel encasement is contrasted with hints of red and orange that emerge at rupture points between the cylinders. The artwork, Safe Hands<\/em>, is by Israeli-born artist Ron Arad<\/a> and commissioned by Great Gulf, the developers of One Bloor East. With the sculpture reaching a height of 27 meters, it weighs in at over 32 tonnes.<\/p>\n

Considering how big, shiny and central this sculpture is, it seems to have made very little impact on Toronto\u2019s public consciousness. And I can understand why. When I saw the piece earlier this year, I had an initial reaction of strong dislike. To me, the work seemed cold and unresponsive. The tubular structure reminded me of indoor-plumbing, and the crushed steel made me feel as if the sculpture were apologizing for its own existence by unraveling towards the ground. My sentiments towards the artwork have now changed, but the question to ask of public art is not so much “do I like it?” but, rather, “what is it doing?”<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

In a phone interview with Irene Szylinger, the public art consultant for Safe Hands<\/em>, and Dragana Maznic, the design director at Great Gulf, both women were adamant about the weight and significance a public artwork would have in front of such a highly visible and much talked about development. \u201cWe were all aware that One Bloor was going to be the<\/em> iconic project of Toronto,\u201d said Maznic, a claim that could be contended. \u201cIt really required a piece that would merit that flagship project and the city. We were going to create a project that was unlike anything that had been presented to the city in terms of the creativity, impact, quality, and the experience [of] the residents\u201d<\/p>\n

Four artists were shortlisted for the public art project. The jury consisted of two representatives from Great Gulf and three external art experts.<\/p>\n

Because of the wealth of factors to consider \u2014 from engineering, visibility and scale to the effects the piece would have on traffic \u2014 the jury reached an impasse when deciding between the last two candidates. It was at this point that Maznic suggested having the two artists introduced to the creative team of architects and designers \u2014 an extra step not usually taken in Percent for Public Art commissions. The jury hoped this meeting would enable the artists to gain an understanding of the creative vision for the development as a whole.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe talked about the feeling we wanted it [the artwork] to exude,\u201d said Szylinger. \u201cYou don\u2019t tell the artist what to do, but you explain what you want the piece to mean and what you want it to stand for. At the time, One Bloor was going to be the tallest building in the heart of the city, so the artwork itself would have to be substantial and reflect the undulations of the architecture.\u201d Once Ron Arad spoke with the creative team and came back with revisions to the work, it was evident to the jury that Safe Hands<\/em> was the ideal structure for the space.<\/p>\n

Both Szylinger and Maznic emphasized to Arad the importance of the Yonge and Bloor intersection and the gravitas of the project. \u201cIt was truly an ambition to enrich our city and to break the boundaries that were there before,\u201d said Maznic, in reference to the artwork\u2019s commission.<\/p>\n

Stephen Richards, the work\u2019s fabricator, was equally enthused about the piece\u2019s realization. For him, the excitement arose from the project\u2019s magnitude and the creative challenge posed by the artwork. In order to achieve the crushed steel effect that begins midway down the sculpture \u2014 an unprecedented feat for a structure of this size \u2014 Richards built his own hydraulic press, a machine that exerts a compressive force on materials. By creating this hydraulic press, Richards was able to articulate to the machine the exact form and shape the creases would take, creating a variation in the sculpture\u2019s grooves and angles.<\/p>\n

While Safe Hands<\/em> has been up since February, the work\u2019s unveiling took place on a beautiful Friday afternoon in early May. Politicians, journalists, artists and Great Gulf representatives were shuttled up to the penthouse suite of One Bloor. Madeline Zito, Great Gulf\u2019s vice president of public relations, declared Ron Arad one of the greatest living designers of our time \u2014 a comment that made the artist chuckle. It was repeatedly emphasized that Toronto had now garnered the status of possessing a Ron Arad-designed artwork. Speakers at the event, like Deputy Mayor Michael Thompson and City Councillor Michael Layton, also made reference to the iconic status of the Yonge and Bloor intersection. Safe Hands <\/em>was not only perceived as a reflection but also an affirmation of the locale\u2019s seminal importance.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

If one word were to describe this fanfare \u2014 from the work\u2019s erection to the unveiling \u2014 it\u2019s prestige. While the excitement surrounding the work has been earnest and sincere, it also felt rather ingratiating. The art\u2019s importance lay not in the work itself but in its significations of grandeur and cachet. In a way, the dialogue surrounding the piece embodied some of the worst stereotypes of Toronto: self-conscious in its pretense and desperate for approval from some external source of authority.<\/p>\n

In a video shown at the unveiling, Arad declared that Safe Hands<\/em> is a piece so large and so close in proximity to One Bloor that we have to reassure ourselves it will not topple over (in other words, we have to feel we are in “safe hands”). \u201cThe hardest part of this piece,\u201d he said, \u201cis knowing when to stop \u2014 to not make it too dangerous.\u201d In reality of course, the sculpture is held up by a big steel column and filled with foam \u2014 incredibly safe and danger free. Yet with this explanation I came to realize that the perceived precariousness of the piece is undeniably its most interesting feature. With its slinky body and wrinkled legs, we get the sense that the sculpture is crumpling under its own momentous weight. It is this sense of precarity that gives the work its aura of playful, daring instability.<\/p>\n

Ron Arad is indeed a multifaceted and innovative artist. He first gained recognition in the early 1980s for his Rover Chair, the base of which he acquired from a derelict British Rover Car 2000 in a junkyard.<\/a> Arad has since gone on to design eclectic and incongruous pieces that range from sculptures<\/a> to apartment buildings<\/a> to sunglasses<\/a>. In other interviews, Arad has emphasized his fascination with the potentiality that lies latent in substances of various kinds, remarking that there is “a kind of hybrid between the will of the designer and the will of the material.”<\/a><\/p>\n

If there is one thing Arad dislikes, its being pinned down to a certain tradition or practice. Even when I tried to draw a connection between Safe Hands<\/em> and some of his other public artworks \u2014 mentioning that the sense of movement evoked from Safe Hands<\/em> is similar to some of his kinetic public artworks like Vortex<\/a> or Spyre\u00a0<\/a>\u2014 he quickly dismissed the idea. \u201cI don\u2019t think there\u2019s some sort of rule that public art has to move,\u201d he said, equating the idea of a common thread in his artistic practice to a prescribed doctrine. This rejection of any kind of continuity or overall meaning in his body of work (whether or not it\u2019s true) is what makes Arad interesting. Defiance, action, and curiosity are what drive his methodology, if he can be said to have one.<\/p>\n

I\u2019ve come to like Safe Hands<\/em> because I recognize the enthusiasm and pride that people like Irene Szylinger and Dragana Maznic imbued into the art\u2019s creation. I\u2019ve come to like it because I appreciate the momentous work and ingenuity exerted by fabricator Stephen Richards. I\u2019ve come to like it because I understand how it fits in with Arad\u2019s larger oeuvre of loopy, daring, and at times cheeky artworks. The question is: should I have had to know all that backstory just in order to like this sculpture?<\/p>\n

Considering the work\u2019s looming and rigid presence, will others be able to appreciate the sculpture without knowing all this additional information? I\u2019m not sure what the purpose of the artwork is, and I\u2019m not sure what it\u2019s trying to say: I don\u2019t think anybody really knows. But I know that it\u2019s there, it\u2019s big, <\/em>and, if anything, we could try to have a little fun with it.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

\n

Sarah Ratzlaff is Spacing\u2019s public art columnist. Follow her on twitter @ratzlaff_sarah<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Outside of One Bloor East, two towering cylindrical figures slink around one another. The sculpture\u2019s reflective steel encasement is contrasted with hints of red and orange that emerge at rupture points between the cylinders. The artwork, Safe Hands, is by Israeli-born artist Ron Arad and commissioned by Great Gulf, the developers of One Bloor East.Continue reading “Understanding Ron Arad’s new public art at Yonge and Bloor”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":8376,"featured_media":60292,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"_ef_editorial_meta_paragraph_assignment":"","_ef_editorial_meta_date_first-draft-date":"","_ef_editorial_meta_checkbox_needs-photo":"","_ef_editorial_meta_number_word-count":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[20],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-60268","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-urban-design"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nUnderstanding Ron Arad's new public art at Yonge and Bloor - Spacing Toronto<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/2019\/05\/28\/understanding-ron-arads-new-public-art-at-yonge-and-bloor\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Understanding Ron Arad's new public art at Yonge and Bloor - Spacing Toronto\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Outside of One Bloor East, two towering cylindrical figures slink around one another. The sculpture\u2019s reflective steel encasement is contrasted with hints of red and orange that emerge at rupture points between the cylinders. The artwork, Safe Hands, is by Israeli-born artist Ron Arad and commissioned by Great Gulf, the developers of One Bloor East.Continue reading "Understanding Ron Arad’s new public art at Yonge and Bloor"\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/2019\/05\/28\/understanding-ron-arads-new-public-art-at-yonge-and-bloor\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Spacing Toronto\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2019-05-28T11:00:56+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2019-05-28T16:52:26+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2019\/05\/IMG_1871.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1243\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"933\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Sarah Ratzlaff\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@Spacing\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@Spacing\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Sarah Ratzlaff\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"7 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/2019\/05\/28\/understanding-ron-arads-new-public-art-at-yonge-and-bloor\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/2019\/05\/28\/understanding-ron-arads-new-public-art-at-yonge-and-bloor\/\",\"name\":\"Understanding Ron Arad's new public art at Yonge and Bloor - Spacing Toronto\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/2019\/05\/28\/understanding-ron-arads-new-public-art-at-yonge-and-bloor\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/2019\/05\/28\/understanding-ron-arads-new-public-art-at-yonge-and-bloor\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2019\/05\/IMG_1871.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2019-05-28T11:00:56+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2019-05-28T16:52:26+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/#\/schema\/person\/f5e8264f4264bb9187f235b1ebd15432\"},\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/2019\/05\/28\/understanding-ron-arads-new-public-art-at-yonge-and-bloor\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/2019\/05\/28\/understanding-ron-arads-new-public-art-at-yonge-and-bloor\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/2019\/05\/28\/understanding-ron-arads-new-public-art-at-yonge-and-bloor\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2019\/05\/IMG_1871.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2019\/05\/IMG_1871.jpg\",\"width\":1243,\"height\":933},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/2019\/05\/28\/understanding-ron-arads-new-public-art-at-yonge-and-bloor\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Understanding Ron Arad’s new public art at Yonge and Bloor\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/\",\"name\":\"Spacing Toronto\",\"description\":\"Canadian Urbanism Uncovered | Toronto Architecture, Urban Design, Public Transit, City Hall, Parks, Walking, Bikes, Streetscape, History, Waterfront, Maps, Public Spaces\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/#\/schema\/person\/f5e8264f4264bb9187f235b1ebd15432\",\"name\":\"Sarah Ratzlaff\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/e43528c01e0ac40a86959e7682d62fe1?s=96&d=blank&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/e43528c01e0ac40a86959e7682d62fe1?s=96&d=blank&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Sarah Ratzlaff\"},\"url\":\"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/author\/sarahratzlaff\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Understanding Ron Arad's new public art at Yonge and Bloor - Spacing Toronto","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/2019\/05\/28\/understanding-ron-arads-new-public-art-at-yonge-and-bloor\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Understanding Ron Arad's new public art at Yonge and Bloor - Spacing Toronto","og_description":"Outside of One Bloor East, two towering cylindrical figures slink around one another. The sculpture\u2019s reflective steel encasement is contrasted with hints of red and orange that emerge at rupture points between the cylinders. The artwork, Safe Hands, is by Israeli-born artist Ron Arad and commissioned by Great Gulf, the developers of One Bloor East.Continue reading \"Understanding Ron Arad’s new public art at Yonge and Bloor\"","og_url":"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/2019\/05\/28\/understanding-ron-arads-new-public-art-at-yonge-and-bloor\/","og_site_name":"Spacing Toronto","article_published_time":"2019-05-28T11:00:56+00:00","article_modified_time":"2019-05-28T16:52:26+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1243,"height":933,"url":"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2019\/05\/IMG_1871.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Sarah Ratzlaff","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_creator":"@Spacing","twitter_site":"@Spacing","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Sarah Ratzlaff","Est. reading time":"7 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/2019\/05\/28\/understanding-ron-arads-new-public-art-at-yonge-and-bloor\/","url":"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/2019\/05\/28\/understanding-ron-arads-new-public-art-at-yonge-and-bloor\/","name":"Understanding Ron Arad's new public art at Yonge and Bloor - Spacing Toronto","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/2019\/05\/28\/understanding-ron-arads-new-public-art-at-yonge-and-bloor\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/2019\/05\/28\/understanding-ron-arads-new-public-art-at-yonge-and-bloor\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2019\/05\/IMG_1871.jpg","datePublished":"2019-05-28T11:00:56+00:00","dateModified":"2019-05-28T16:52:26+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/#\/schema\/person\/f5e8264f4264bb9187f235b1ebd15432"},"breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/2019\/05\/28\/understanding-ron-arads-new-public-art-at-yonge-and-bloor\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/2019\/05\/28\/understanding-ron-arads-new-public-art-at-yonge-and-bloor\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/2019\/05\/28\/understanding-ron-arads-new-public-art-at-yonge-and-bloor\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2019\/05\/IMG_1871.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2019\/05\/IMG_1871.jpg","width":1243,"height":933},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/2019\/05\/28\/understanding-ron-arads-new-public-art-at-yonge-and-bloor\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Understanding Ron Arad’s new public art at Yonge and Bloor"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/#website","url":"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/","name":"Spacing Toronto","description":"Canadian Urbanism Uncovered | Toronto Architecture, Urban Design, Public Transit, City Hall, Parks, Walking, Bikes, Streetscape, History, Waterfront, Maps, Public Spaces","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/#\/schema\/person\/f5e8264f4264bb9187f235b1ebd15432","name":"Sarah Ratzlaff","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/e43528c01e0ac40a86959e7682d62fe1?s=96&d=blank&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/e43528c01e0ac40a86959e7682d62fe1?s=96&d=blank&r=g","caption":"Sarah Ratzlaff"},"url":"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/author\/sarahratzlaff\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/60268","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/8376"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=60268"}],"version-history":[{"count":11,"href":"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/60268\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":60306,"href":"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/60268\/revisions\/60306"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/60292"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=60268"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=60268"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=60268"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}