Perpetuity (sculpture)

External image
Standard Insurance Center (Portland, Oregon) by Marion Dean Ross (June 6, 1970), University of Oregon Libraries

Perpetuity is a sculpture by Alexander von Svoboda, completed in 1970. It consists of a bronze "seedling" inside a hollowed-out cross section of a 350 feet (110 m), Giant Sequoia tree.[1][2] The seedling is suspended by bronze shafts that pierce the wood and extend several feet beyond, creating a "sunburst" effect.[1] The sculpture measures approximately 10 feet (3.0 m) x 10 feet (3.0 m) x 3 feet (0.91 m), has a 32-foot (9.8 m) diameter, and weighs 13.5 tons.[1][2] It rests on a concrete base which measures approximately 85 inches (220 cm) x 38 inches (97 cm) x 38 inches (97 cm). The Smithsonian Institution categorizes the piece as abstract and allegorical ("time", "eternity").[1]

According to Svoboda, the work symbolizes "growth, regeneration and the perpetual cycle of life".[2] Smithsonian offers the following remark by Svoboda: "This is perpetual, the beginning and end of life, or to say it another way, there is no end and no beginning..."[1] The sculpture was surveyed and considered "treatment urgent" by Smithsonian's "Save Outdoor Sculpture!" program in 1993.[1] By then, the sculpture was owned by the World Forestry Center and installed in front of its Merlo Hall, having been donated by Standard Insurance Company.[1]

• 1970 in art
• The Quest (1970) by Svoboda, installed in front of Portland's Standard Insurance Center