THE SCULPTURE ITSELF:
Liviu Mocan has finalised the form of the Invitation sculpture, slightly different to the one on the brochure in that each column is curved in a little at the top, and has nearly completed the first 4.5 metre column in Cluj, Romania (Photo: Liviu testing out the seat at the base of the giant finger). All ten columns will be the same, except for slight variations in the finishing, which means that the whole sculpture can be cast from one mould - in time for the Calvin Jubilee celebrations in Geneva this year.
COMING TO GENEVA:
The process of finding a suitable permant site for a large bronze sculpture is a long and slow one, and so we’ve decided to make the sculpture initially in fibreglass. This will be exactly the same form and size as the final bronze version, but has the advantage of being mobile, and can be cast at a fraction of the cost!
So we now have the exciting possibility of exhibiting the sculpture in different locations around Geneva this year. We’ve been invited to set it up in the Parc des Bastions, close to the famous Reformation Wall, for the month of July! This is an ideal location, and a whole range of events will take place there to celebrate Calvin’s 500th anniversary. Consequently the sculpture should get thousands of visitors in July, and it will be linked to the “agora” zone, where regular discussions will be held on Calvin’s ideas and their relevance today.
PRACTICAL STEPS:
The sculptor will soon finish the original version of the sculpture, and the fibreglass mould made. Once funds are available, it will be cast in fibreglass, and transported to Geneva. The budget for creating this provisional version of the sculpture comes to around 25,000 euros - just one tenth of the cost of making it in bronze, and more appropriate in a time of recession! Will you make a contribution to this amount? You can make an online donation here.
HOPE AND THE DECALOGUE:
A new blog on the sculpture website begins with some thoughts on how the sculpture offers hope at the start of 2009, in a time of economic gloom and anxiety.
