The week before spring break in the University Center, Carnegie Mellon's Public Art Committee held an open meeting in line with the new Public Art Policy to discuss the future campus location of two accepted art pieces: "Walking to the Sky" and "Mao Yisheng." Both pieces had already been accepted to be placed on campus. Since that meeting, both sculpture locations have been approved by the Property and Facilities Committee of the Board of Trustees. "Walking to the Sky" will be located in front of Warner Hall on the Cut, and "Mao Yisheng" will be placed in one of the niches outside of Baker Hall.

This meeting was the first in a series for faculty, staff, and other members of the campus community to freely voice their opinions on upcoming installations. Hilary Robinson, CFA faculty member and chair of the Public Art Committee, was the facilitator for the meeting. The committee itself is comprised of students, faculty, and members of the Board of Trustees. According to Robinson, faculty positions are filled by means of a "complicated rotating membership... Colleges nominate faculty to serve." Currently CIT, Tepper, and MCS have members on it. Student members are elected by Student Government. Two new members will be elected to the board on Thursday, March 30, at the Student Senate meeting. Interested students should e-mail their senators for more information. 

The public art meeting was scheduled during a week when many students had midterm exams and at the same time as the Dean of Student Affairs selection hearing. However, the room was still full of attendees.
  
In her opening remarks, Robinson asked those not of campus community to leave. Not a moment later, Heinz faculty member Gordon Lewis rose to ask why she was closing the meeting. Robinson retorted that the meeting was for the campus specifically and those not of that community were not welcome. Robinson reiterated that the two pieces of art, "Mao Yisheng" and "Walking To The Sky," were accepted already and the meeting was only to discuss the installation sites of the pieces. The exchange set the tense, somewhat confrontational, tone for the rest of the evening.

The first accepted piece is a 8.5 foot tall statue of Mao Yisheng. Mao, who was from mainland China, is one of the most revered engineers in Chinese history and was the first person to graduate from Carnegie Mellon with a PhD. Various sites were considered around Baker Hall and in front of Scaife Hall in Schenley Park parallel to Porter Hall. The fact that Yisheng would have attended classes in Baker and Porter while studying engineering at Carnegie Mellon was an additional factor that led to the final site choice: the second inside niche on the Mall side of Baker Hall.

There were a few concerns expressed about the appropriateness of this statue being the first on campus and the size of the piece imposing on the quickly dwindling open space on campus. However, after less than ten people commented on the "Mao Yisheng," Robinson moved to the second and final item on the agenda, the placement of "Walking to the Sky."

Jonathan Borofsky, artist of "Walking To The Sky," is a 1964 School of Art alumnus. The piece was inspired by childhood dream to reach for the sky. Several human characters are ascending the pole towards the sky. His statue has at the base three figures staring up the pole. Many community members protesting the piece had an aversion toward the sculpture's pole, which is 20 inches in diameter and extends diagonally upwards 100 feet.

On acquisition, it was unclear where to site the piece. In considering an appropriate site for the piece, Borofsky himself walked the campus and sites were chosen for their aesthetic quality. Several sites were thrown out because of underground utilities. The photographic mock ups of the final round of possible sites, such as the CFA lawn, for installation resulted in loud giggling throughout the room. The site eventually decided upon by the committee just left of first tree between Warner and the University Center on the Warner side of the Cut. 

It is important that the placement won't interfere with sports activity on the lawn. Though the placement is in the location many have pointed to as the ideal spot for a gateway clearly marking the entrance onto Carnegie Mellon's campus, Robinson insisted that placing "Walking to the Sky" there would not interfere with such plans.

When Robinson turned the floor over for question from the audience, it became clear why the majority of attendees were there. Questions and suggestions from the group ranged from putting the "Walking to the Sky" piece in storage to insightful theories on interpretation. The comments revealed prejudices and conflicts between academic departments pertaining to public art drawing too much attention to one school at Carnegie Mellon.

A repeated sentiment was that placing the piece in the proposed sight would provide an inaccurate image of Carnegie Mellon: does "Walking to the Sky" really represent Carnegie Mellon University?

"What bothers me is how it defines us," Lewis said. "I really feel it defines us in the wrong way."  

Robinson also read e-mails of those who contacted her but were not able to attend the meeting. The MCS dean Richard McCullough wrote, "I support strongly public art. The debate has been misguided [especially] that which is directed toward the donors." The dean was referencing in particular the negative comments made through misc.market about the piece and its proposed sites of installation on the CFA lawn.  

Assistant professor of art Melissa Ragono added, "I don't love this piece, but I support the site because it will inspire debate between policy and art. I love that."

After one attendee brought up the broad campus expression of dislike for Kraus Kampo, a recent installation on campus by artist Mel Bochner and landscape architect Michael Van Valkenburgh, emeritus professor of physics Hugh Young, whose January 24 remarks to the Faculty Senate were published in the February FOCUS, related the Kraus Kampo to "Walking to the Sky."

"What troubles me is no matter what site we choose for this piece, no matter where I go on campus, it is visible," Young said. "A virtue of Kraus Campo is that it doesn't inflict itself on you… It would be different if [Walking to the Sky] was six feet tall."

English professor Alan Kennedy, after reiterating that nestling the piece would minimize imposition, offered a possible (mis)interpretation: he said the statue "seems like a socioeconomic statement. African Americans [are] at the base looking upward and people are climbing to nothing staring at each other posteriors."

Professor of art Bob Bingham expressed his concern over the resistance to public art on campus while commending the purpose of the meeting.

"Nature is all about change," Bingham began, "Humans don't accept change. This is wonderful process people should have voice these."

Heinz faculty member Bob Strauss, vocal in complaint preceding the meeting in the form of a scathing article in the February FOCUS, found his opportunity to voice all complaints verbally and in writing during the meeting. He directed his numerous questions about the piece's placement, appropriateness, and details of the gift agreement to Robinson, the committee, and the audience, and passed out copies of his full remarks to all in attendance. As he read the final paragraph of this statement, he pulled out a laser pointer and walked up to the projection of the proposed site of placement. The comments he passed out were entitled "More Plop Art Coming to Carnegie Mellon - Time for a Legal Defense Fund of Green Space at Carnegie Mellon?"

The meeting ended a short while later, but two hours after it had commenced. The purpose of the meeting was to come to some consensus about the placement of the piece. However, the attendees' consensus was unfavorable; those representing the campus community were unhappy about the lack of weight their opinions had, and thought that the current site is unacceptable to most. A more nestled location would be more readily accepted by the community at large. One question remained unanswered: is "Walking to the Sky" good art or just obtrusive?

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