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DeWitt Godfrey’s Hedan Sculpture Is Part Of The County’s 1 Percent Law To Enhance Public Sites
By Tina Traster
When Rockland County bonds for capital projects, we feel a pinch in our pocket. But a lesser-known perk that comes along with this kind of spending is public art.
Take for example the County’s recently completed $40 million highway department building at 26 Scotland Hill Road in Chestnut Ridge, where an impressive rust-hued corten steel sculpture resembling circular campfire flames (art is subjective) has been installed. This touch of art amid the hulking industrial campus buildings is not by chance – rather, DeWitt Godfrey’s “Hedan” sculpture is part of Rockland County Art in Public Places (AIPP) program mandated by a 1986 local law that requires 1 percent of the first $15 million of bonded county capital projects be allocated for the acquisition of works of art in public spaces.
The law was introduced nearly 40 years ago by Legislators Harriet Cornell and Bruce Levine based on a similar New York City law. But Rockland is the only New York county outside the city that has an AIPP law, according to Julianne Ramos, the organization’s’ executive director.
The law’s language puts it this way: “A public art program is one of the finest contributions a government can make to its citizens, since it provides the community with a unique identity, civic pride and thought-provoking cultural landmarks, as well as a sense of community cohesion.”
Over the past four decades, AAIP has shepherded the selection and siting of more than 40 sculptures, paintings, photographs and installations at public sites throughout Rockland County. Some of the works include Tom Holmes’ Art Garden in the Park Sculptural Installation (2020) in the Zebrowski-Morahan Demarest Kill Park, Eric David Laxman’s “Two Benches” (2019) at the Fire Training Center in Pomona, and Kugler Ning Lighting (2018) at the Bridge Street Drawbridge in Piermont.
The AIPP committee — 11 volunteers from the community — commissions, selects, and places works of art at public sites throughout the county, and oversees the conservation of these works. The committee members include experts in the fields of art history, art education, conservation, photography, landscape architecture, and design. The committee is appointed by the county executive and confirmed by the county legislature but works with Rockland Center for the Arts to choose artists’ works. The county gives AIPP a $19,000 annual stipend to run the program and pay for the executive director.
DeWitt Godfrey’s 15,000-pound sculpture Hedan, which is 16-feet wide by 16-feet deep by 17-feet high, is made of corten (weathered) steel and stainless bolts. Godfrey is a large-scale sculptor based in Hamilton, New York. His work plays with natural geometries and systems – plant spores, seashells, honeycombs – “and his sculptures through his unique process of packing and stacking of conic and cylindrical steel forms, give rise to extraordinary complexity,” according to his website.
“Hedan” (pronounced HEE-dan) is from the Old English derivation of “heed”. The essential mission of the Highway Department is to “care for, maintain, to pay attention” to our system of roads, the artist said in his pitch.
The vertical sculpture in front of the highway building stands in contrast to the boxy edifice. “The corten steel ribbons,” Ramos said, “evoke a ribbon of highway. They have meaning, and visual appeal in relationship to the building.”
Ramos said the committee looks for low-maintenance art that “will stand the test of time.” She added, “Over the years, we have learned which materials are good, and which don’t work well.”
Payment for commissioned art ranges from $10,000 to $150,000, though most pieces run between $25,000 to $50,000. The county paid $150,000 for Hedan.
The county’s new $40 million highway department garage and maintenance facility (the county bonded $38.5 million) includes seven buildings across 24 acres. The facility is on the border of Chestnut Ridge and Clarkstown, just north of New York State Thruway Exit 14a. It includes an office building, operations building, vehicle storage for the fleet, a repair shop, a salt mound capable of storing 10,000 tons of salt for use during the winter months, a wash facility for large vehicles, a fuel station, and emergency generators with enough fuel in storage to keep them running for two weeks.
Rockland purchased the land on which the new facility was built for $1 from the New York State Department of Transportation. The previous highway department facility had been built in 1935. In the 1960s after 30 years of service it became apparent that upgrades would be needed and, eventually, need to be replaced.
In 2020, the County Legislature approved bonding to finance construction of a new facility.
The process to find art begins with an RFP. The committee selects five finalists, who are asked to present models, and to discuss how the art relates to the site.
“This is very different than taking a piece of art in a gallery,” said Ramos. “Public arts works with engineers to make sure the piece is safe and built properly. Is it right for our soil, or will it heave up in the cold? Will it rust? Does it obstruct a building or lighting and signage? There are many factors with outdoor public art.”
The AIPP’s website has an interactive map of the works, which are scattered throughout the county. Ramos believes the collective sites are an important draw for tourists and others who are interested in the arts. The collection includes murals, metal and brick sculptures, stained glass windows, paintings and photographs. Sometimes the art blends into the environment; but taken together, the pieces add up to an impressive group of assets.
Ultimately the committee votes on the winner.
AAIP is working on three projects: They are seeking art for a park area of Demarest Kill Park, two sculptures near the bridge at the County Office building, and a mural project at the Yeager health center.
“Public art is important,” said Ramos. “It enhances the built environment, beautifies our county, it’s a teaching tool. It inspires people to create art. It attracts visitors.”
