by Sonja Eveslage
“Where is it your parents live in the City?” our son’s friend asked. They are in that high rise…just North of the Franklin Institute…you know…the one with the funky neon on the top.
We continue to suspect that more than one resident has identified CityView by the colorful sculpture on the top. Only after some investigation did we learn that the “funky” sculpture had been done by Stephen Antonakos, a pioneer in the use of neon as art and an internationally known sculptor.
“Neons for Buttonwood” adorns the facade of the South Tower. Photo by Chuck Homler.
The sculpture, added to the building in 1990 when Korman Suites called the residence “Buttonwood Square,” was designed in part to fill requirements of the City’s One Percent for Art program. That program, still in existence, requires developers who use any public resources to devote 1% of their budget to public art. Both the neon sculpture and the Winifred Lutz work (see accompanying story) were funded under that program.
Antonakos died in 2013 at age 86. The NY Times obituary of September 6, 2013, described his work “as leagues apart from the commercial signage that until the late 20th century was neon’s fundamental expression.”
In a bit of whimsy, the City of Philadelphia recognizes this distinction. Search the City’s Licenses and Inspections file and you will find a picture of the sculpture including the label…“public art…not a sign.”
Owning an Antonakos sculpture puts the association in good company. The Times reported that his public works are in places as diverse as a Chicago police station, a metro station in Baltimore and airports in Athens, Atlanta and Bari, Italy.
Reflecting on the artistic merits of the work, the Times said “Mr. Antanokis used neon as a painter uses paint. Minimalist, with fluid lines and saturated colors that recall Matisse.” His work is included in major museums including the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Museum of Modern Art, the Guggenheim Museum and the Whitney Museum of American Art in Manhattan, plus the Brooklyn Museum and the Philadelphia Museum of Art.
Public Art in Philadelphia has a long tradition. The Association for Public Art, formerly the Fairmount Park Commission, was founded in 1872. The Mural Arts program, founded in 1984, has created more than 3600 murals throughout the city.
The One Percent for Art program has operated since 1959 when Philadelphia became the first city in the nation to require developers to contribute art to the public space. More than 400 works have been commissioned. You can link to a description of our Antonakos sculpture at: http://associationforpublicart.org/interactive-art-map/neons-for-buttonwood.
Please note that the CityView Lights Committee is working to raise the necessary funds to relight “Neons for Buttonwood.”