www.instituteforpublicart.org:
Estrella del Norte was a large-scale redevelopment project that turned a centrally located abandoned lot in Puerto Rico's second-largest city, Bayamón, into a new park.
Worried about crime and declining use, Bayamón officials sought something more than an economic revitalization project; they desired an iconic, marquee-ready piece of public art that could help define and galvanize the city's revitalization efforts.
Although situated in a prime location, with easy access to mass transit, universities, and destinations for tourists and shoppers, the abandoned lot chosen for redevelopment had long been left to addicts. 'The space was a high crime area where hundreds of syringes were collected before construction,' reports Pablo Rubio, the artist on the team that designed Estrella Del Norte Park to replace the vacant lot. Rubio's team was selected from five competing groups and charged with creating a park setting that not only transformed the space, but also as a 'socio-cultural icon' for the residents of Bayamón.
www.codaworx.com:
'Estrella Del Norte' ('The North Star') is one of the longest sculptures in the world with dimensions of 616 feet long by 60 feet high. This sculpture was done in a medium of steel, stainless steel, weather resistant cold paint, and finished with LED light accents. World renowned artist Pablo Rubio designed and created the sculpture.
The goal of this incredible sculpture was to demonstrate that the sky is not the limit, that we have the capabilities to create incredible monuments that can inspire thousands. This mesmerizing sculpture still stands as one of longest sculptures in the world and its a staple for the arts in Puerto Rico.
The collaboration process involved many people due to the magnitude of the project. Artist Pablo Rubio made sure to have all parties involved and updated. From day one the artist was present in the project and all parties were blown away with the end result.
www.iblicart.org:
The result of the redevelopment project is Estrella del Norte Park. Inspired by universal shapes, the park is comprised of several circular shapes, including a curved wall. A solar-powered lighting feature marks the location of 400 stars with the North Star (Estrella del Norte) at the center. A large stage and permanent seating provides a performance space, and the design includes a new restaurant.
Rubio's contribution is a monumental sculpture that spans the entire park with its 616-foot length. A section of the sculpture includes a three-dimensional, 25-foot-tall star that both rotates and is lit by solar-powered lights. The sculpture is part of Rubio's broader artistic agenda to encourage those who interact with his work to 'get in touch, in one way or another, with our own being and the position we occupy in our environment in relation to space, time, and light.'
Instead of drug users, the new park attracts a broad segment of Bayamón's population. 'Designing for barreaces is one of my interests because we can appropriate and repurpose the space for a better socio-cultural urban use,' he says. 'Today, Estrella Del Norte is a cultural space.' The variety of programing includes concerts, art festivals, arts workshops''and open, recreational space. Puerto Rico lacks similar spaces, he says, so the park draws from surrounding areas in the metro, especially since its location is directly across from a main mass transit stop.
As a 'socio-cultural icon,' the piece has all the marks of success''it is a distinctive, contemporary artwork that is as recognizable as any good 'logo' public artwork. Publicity and urban branding has begun the process of associating the city and its revitalization dreams with the aspirational new sculpture.
One feature that sets Estrella Del Norte apart from similar large-scale transformative placemaking projects is Rubio's very practical commitment to social justice. As part of the project, he created Art for Inmates, a rehabilibrought prisoners into the community. 'They worked and interacted in harmony with the civil population,' says Rubio. 'Many of them obtained pardons for their ex
cellent behavior and achievements.'
Source: Shanghai Academy of Fine Arts.
Revista IDentidad:
La escultura, de Pablo Rubio, ha convertido el área en una zona de entretenimiento. Las luces y las noches de Bohemia y tapas promueven la música en vivo, bajo las estrellas y la monumental escultura.
Translation:
The sculpture, Pablo Rubio, has turned the area into an entertainment area. The lights and the nights of Bohemia and tapas promote live music under the stars and monumental sculpture.
www.mapr.org:
Pablo Rubio is a sculptor, painter, draftsman, designer, curator and professor.
Obtained a Bachelor's Degree in Arts at the Puerto Rico School of Plastic Arts and a Master's Degree at the State University of New York (SUNY) in Buffalo. He now teaches at the University of Puerto Rico.
In 1985, he wthe First International Sculpture Symposium in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, and has attended others since then. His public sculpture is widely known and has created over twenty monuments all over the Island, as well as others in the United States, Korea, Venezuela and Ecuador.
He has participated in several programs and organizations, like the Puerto Rico Sculptors Association and the Tropical Garden of International Sculpture. In 1984, his work broke the mold with his work Guerrero celeste ('Sky Warrior', winner of the Fomento Prize), which is a traditional bronze casting portraying contemporary forms.
He has continued to revolutionize the medium with his use of stainless steel to explore, among other topics, the conceptual connections between the Taàno symbols and the extrasensory world.
Estrella del Norte was a large-scale redevelopment project that turned a centrally located abandoned lot in Puerto Rico's second-largest city, Bayamón, into a new park.
Worried about crime and declining use, Bayamón officials sought something more than an economic revitalization project; they desired an iconic, marquee-ready piece of public art that could help define and galvanize the city's revitalization efforts.
Although situated in a prime location, with easy access to mass transit, universities, and destinations for tourists and shoppers, the abandoned lot chosen for redevelopment had long been left to addicts. 'The space was a high crime area where hundreds of syringes were collected before construction,' reports Pablo Rubio, the artist on the team that designed Estrella Del Norte Park to replace the vacant lot. Rubio's team was selected from five competing groups and charged with creating a park setting that not only transformed the space, but also as a 'socio-cultural icon' for the residents of Bayamón.
www.codaworx.com:
'Estrella Del Norte' ('The North Star') is one of the longest sculptures in the world with dimensions of 616 feet long by 60 feet high. This sculpture was done in a medium of steel, stainless steel, weather resistant cold paint, and finished with LED light accents. World renowned artist Pablo Rubio designed and created the sculpture.
The goal of this incredible sculpture was to demonstrate that the sky is not the limit, that we have the capabilities to create incredible monuments that can inspire thousands. This mesmerizing sculpture still stands as one of longest sculptures in the world and its a staple for the arts in Puerto Rico.
The collaboration process involved many people due to the magnitude of the project. Artist Pablo Rubio made sure to have all parties involved and updated. From day one the artist was present in the project and all parties were blown away with the end result.
www.iblicart.org:
The result of the redevelopment project is Estrella del Norte Park. Inspired by universal shapes, the park is comprised of several circular shapes, including a curved wall. A solar-powered lighting feature marks the location of 400 stars with the North Star (Estrella del Norte) at the center. A large stage and permanent seating provides a performance space, and the design includes a new restaurant.
Rubio's contribution is a monumental sculpture that spans the entire park with its 616-foot length. A section of the sculpture includes a three-dimensional, 25-foot-tall star that both rotates and is lit by solar-powered lights. The sculpture is part of Rubio's broader artistic agenda to encourage those who interact with his work to 'get in touch, in one way or another, with our own being and the position we occupy in our environment in relation to space, time, and light.'
Instead of drug users, the new park attracts a broad segment of Bayamón's population. 'Designing for barreaces is one of my interests because we can appropriate and repurpose the space for a better socio-cultural urban use,' he says. 'Today, Estrella Del Norte is a cultural space.' The variety of programing includes concerts, art festivals, arts workshops''and open, recreational space. Puerto Rico lacks similar spaces, he says, so the park draws from surrounding areas in the metro, especially since its location is directly across from a main mass transit stop.
As a 'socio-cultural icon,' the piece has all the marks of success''it is a distinctive, contemporary artwork that is as recognizable as any good 'logo' public artwork. Publicity and urban branding has begun the process of associating the city and its revitalization dreams with the aspirational new sculpture.
One feature that sets Estrella Del Norte apart from similar large-scale transformative placemaking projects is Rubio's very practical commitment to social justice. As part of the project, he created Art for Inmates, a rehabilibrought prisoners into the community. 'They worked and interacted in harmony with the civil population,' says Rubio. 'Many of them obtained pardons for their ex
cellent behavior and achievements.'
Source: Shanghai Academy of Fine Arts.
Revista IDentidad:
La escultura, de Pablo Rubio, ha convertido el área en una zona de entretenimiento. Las luces y las noches de Bohemia y tapas promueven la música en vivo, bajo las estrellas y la monumental escultura.
Translation:
The sculpture, Pablo Rubio, has turned the area into an entertainment area. The lights and the nights of Bohemia and tapas promote live music under the stars and monumental sculpture.
www.mapr.org:
Pablo Rubio is a sculptor, painter, draftsman, designer, curator and professor.
Obtained a Bachelor's Degree in Arts at the Puerto Rico School of Plastic Arts and a Master's Degree at the State University of New York (SUNY) in Buffalo. He now teaches at the University of Puerto Rico.
In 1985, he wthe First International Sculpture Symposium in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, and has attended others since then. His public sculpture is widely known and has created over twenty monuments all over the Island, as well as others in the United States, Korea, Venezuela and Ecuador.
He has participated in several programs and organizations, like the Puerto Rico Sculptors Association and the Tropical Garden of International Sculpture. In 1984, his work broke the mold with his work Guerrero celeste ('Sky Warrior', winner of the Fomento Prize), which is a traditional bronze casting portraying contemporary forms.
He has continued to revolutionize the medium with his use of stainless steel to explore, among other topics, the conceptual connections between the Taàno symbols and the extrasensory world.