The Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA) has loaned three works of outdoor sculpture to Cal State LA for a period of ten years.
Public Art provides teaching and learning opportunities while also inviting civic dialogue. These sculptures support community vibrancy and a sense of belonging that attracts attention and aids wayfinding. Spaces like this connect artists with the community on and off-campus.
Decoy (1990) by Martin Puryear (b. 1941) was on display in the LACMA sculpture garden. Puryear is a major contemporary artist in the minimalist tradition who represented the US at the Venice Biennale. This is the only time this work has left LACMA since its acquisition in 1990.
Decoy is located at the Fine Arts Building.
Tornado (1985) is by LA-based artist Mark Lere. Since 1980, Lere has focused firmly on environmental phenomena, including the forces of water and wind. In addition to this work in the LACMA collection, he has numerous works in the collection of the LA Museum of Contemporary Art.
Tornado is located in a raised bed in the Music Courtyard.
John Henry (1957) by Bernard Zimmerman (1930-2009). Bernard Zimmerman was an architect, activist, artist, and teacher in Southern California during the second half of the twentieth century. In addition to the influence generated from his midcentury modern buildings, as a professor of environmental design and architecture for over three decades at Cal Poly Pomona, Zimmerman had an indelible impact on a generation of architects and artists. During the 1950s in Los Angeles, he began to exhibit modern sculpture like this work, and for these explorations of simplified forms he was immediately branded a communist and anti-American.
John Henry is located between the State Playhouse and Music Building.