Agora (sculpture)
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''Agora'' is an installation of 106 headless and armless iron sculptures at the south end of Grant Park in Chicago. Designed by Polish artist Magdalena Abakanowicz, they were made in a foundry near Poznań between 2004 and 2006.. In 2006, the Chicago Park District brought the work to Chicago as a permanent loan from the
Polish Ministry of Culture Ministry of Culture and National Heritage of the Republic of Poland ( pl, Ministerstwo Kultury i Dziedzictwa Narodowego) is a governmental administration office concerned with various aspects of Polish culture. It was formed on 31 October 200 ...
. Similar installations have been constructed throughout the world, but ''Agora'' is among the largest.


History and description

Chicago, which has a large Polish American community, had hoped to add a major work by Abakanowicz for several years before ''Agora'' arrived. Among the plans which were not realized were a large hand to be placed at the end of
BP Pedestrian Bridge The BP Pedestrian Bridge, or simply BP Bridge, is a girder footbridge in the Loop community area of Chicago, United States. It spans Columbus Drive to connect Maggie Daley Park (formerly, Daley Bicentennial Plaza) with Millennium Park, both pa ...
and a set of animal sculptures to be placed near the Monroe Street harbor. One proposal called for a group of headless figures be placed in Chicago's Museum Campus. Chicago Mayor
Richard M. Daley Richard Michael Daley (born April 24, 1942) is an American politician who served as the 54th mayor of Chicago, Illinois, from 1989 to 2011. Daley was elected mayor in 1989 and was reelected five times until declining to run for a seventh term ...
eventually suggested placing an installation at the south end of Grant Park, near Roosevelt Road. By 2006, private donors, including actor Robin Williams, contributed over $700,000 to bring the work to Chicago. The figures are tall and weigh approximately . Each is made from a hollow, seamless piece of iron that has been allowed to rust, creating a reddish appearance and a bark-like texture. The figures appear to be milling about in a crowd; some face each other, while others look away. Visitors are meant to walk through the sculptures and contemplate the work. The name ''Agora'' refers to the urban meeting places of the Ancient Greek city-states. Abakanowicz, who grew up during World War II, has said that her art draws on her fear of crowds, which she once described as "brainless organisms acting on command, worshiping on command and hating on command". However, the work has inspired optimistic interpretations. Kevin Nance of the ''Chicago Sun-Times'' wrote, "If they had arms and hands (they don't), these would be clasped behind their backs as if in contemplation. They seem, somehow, to be thinking, not as a group but as individuals. ..It's possible, in fact, to interpret the piece as a representation of democracy."


Reception

''Agora'' received a mixed response from the people of Chicago. "I get e-mails from people loving it and people hating it. There's nothing in between," said Bob O'Neill. Mayor Daley lauded the work, saying, "You've got to go through it yourself to feel the spirit of the artist and each piece of artwork."


See also

*
List of public art in Chicago The city of Chicago, Illinois, is home to many notable works of public art on permanent display in an outdoor public space. References External links * {{Public art in the United States Art, Public Chicag ...


References


External links


''Agora'' (in Grant Park)
{{Portal bar, Chicago, Visual arts 2006 establishments in Illinois 2006 sculptures Iron sculptures in the United States Outdoor sculptures in Chicago