Promenade consists of two bronze sculptures, 9’6”x 18”x 18” and 8’6”x 18”x18” in size. The pieces represent two people on a walk, “promenading” through Skyline Park. Artist Ann Weber wanted the sculpture to be larger than life for impact, but close enough to human scale as to not be intimidating. The original forms are made from cardboard strips stapled together. The transformation takes place when the sculpture is taken from the studio to the foundry and cast. Weber likens the process to turning straw into gold. Promenade was cast locally at Fedde Bronze Works while Ironstone Construction laid the foundation for the pieces.

Ann Weber’s artistic journey began with ceramics. She spent 15 years making functional clay pottery on the wheel before leaving New York for California. She studied with Viola Frey and Art Nelson while pursuing an MFA at California College of Arts and Crafts in Oakland. In 1991, Weber began working with cardboard because she wanted to make large forms and eliminate the cumbersome process of clay and the weight of large clay objects. Using Frank Gehry’s cardboard furniture as inspiration, she decided to use the same material for abstract shapes. Weber works with a palette of simple forms: cylinders and circles. She views these shapes as the symbols of life, male and female, and the origin of all forms in nature. She is interested in the possibilities of making beauty from a common and mundane material.

Please visit www.annwebersculpture.com for more information on Ann Weber’s work.