“Dodi,” a lighted sculpture from the Oakland artist collaborative HYBYCOZO, is scheduled for installation Monday at the Assistance League headquarters in downtown Los Altos.
After more than eight years on the Los Altos Public Arts Commission and “not getting much done with city government,” Maddy McBirney figured it was time for an alternative plan for public art in the city.
“It has been brought to our attention that we can do public art on private property with private funding without the need of municipal process,” she said.
So McBirney and friend and former Public Arts Commissioner Karen Zucker – among other local art aficionados – founded a nonprofit, Arts Los Altos. Their goal, according to McBirney, is to “provide beautiful, outdoor art” for downtown Los Altos.
In a letter to potential donors, Arts Los Altos organizers noted that the piece “will bring color and light to downtown. It is math, science, art and technology at its best.”
Group members hope to raise $60,000 for their first two or three art installations.
“Dodi” is a 6-foot-tall, 12-sided shape with repeating pentagons. It will be illuminated from within, with colored LED lights that produce intricate patterns on the ground surrounding the artwork.
“The sculpture was inspired by the geometry of the flower of life, a symbol found in almost every ancient culture in the world, in plant and flower growth, as well as in the growing embryo during cell division,” Arts Los Altos supporters said in a June 9 press release. “Composed of overlapping circles forming petal shapes, it represents the creation of beauty through unity, a sum greater than the parts.”
“This started with Assistance League’s request for a ‘sculpture with light’ for their front patio,” said Zucker, the group’s director of communications and development. “We researched various sculpture artists, and Assistance League liked the HYBYCOZO sculpture the best. This was a great fit because it was available and fit within our budget.”
Zucker and Adele Hennig of Assistance League said they were “excited” about the new sculpture.
“I think it will really help revitalize and inspire Los Altos during this difficult time,” Zucker said.
