Sep 252011
The Richmond District
Richmond Recreation Center
251 18th Avenue
Throughout the park is poetry cast into concrete benches and carved into stones.
The artist, Seyed Alavi titled this piece Speaking Stones. It was to be a poetry garden with metaphors for health, contentment and community.
Seyed Alavi received a Bachelor of Science degree from San Jose State University and a Masters of Fine Art from the San Francisco Art Institute. Alavi’s work is often engaged with the poetics of language and space and their power to shape reality.
The various concrete benches read from left to right :
They stained my fingers at a touch. They were crimson yesterday on the branch. So fresh that this morning I searched for them in vain. For they had already vanished and fell to the bottom of the pool.
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The stones were not as easy to read, but the snippets were thoughtful.
The problem with this installation is the lack of maintenance. The stones and the hard concrete require lush plantings to convey their message. Sadly, the plantings were sparse and the maintenance very poor. Alavi’s work deserves better.
Isn’t it a shame when someone takes the time and effort to create an area of art and then it is not taken care of! I ran across a similar area with words in concrete and it wasn’t kept too well either. I don’t think I’ve told you how much you have influenced my photography. I’ve been inspired by you and Kat Sloma to get out and find new and interesting things to photograph in my town. I’ve run across scupltures and murals and I think “La Principessa Errante would love this!” and then I go home and try to research it. You’ve enriched my life and my photography. Thank You!!
I’s sad when one person’s vision is not supported by others. It sounds like a great idea to me!
Ooooo I truly love everything in this post! Especially the rocks with words! LOVE those!