Willow Glen Resident

News

Photograph by Vicki Thompson

Unity in Words: Circle of Dreams project was installed outside the Gardner Community Center. More than 350 community members created tiles that incorporated their wishes and hopes for a strong community.

Public art makes dreams come true

By Laura Rheinheimer

A public art project is a dream come true for community members who remember how the Willis Avenue cul-de-sac used to be.

"This place was recognized as a place to come and party," says Gardner area resident Rudy Martinez.

Previously known as "Varrio Horseshoe" after a local gang, the cul-de-sac has been transformed into the "Circle of Dreams."

Part of that dream is 10 bronze posts that stand in place of the bollards meant to keep cars from driving into Briebach Park. The posts were designed with impressions of more than 350 community members' dreams.

Children, families, seniors and entire neighborhoods participated in the project, which was funded by a $15,000 grant from the city of San Jose Community Action and Pride program.

Headed by Willow Glen resident and San José State University professor Linda Walsh, the project helped people express their dreams in 5-inch wax tiles that were later cast in bronze.

Most of the funds were used to buy materials; labor came free from Walsh and San José State art graduate students Julie Jacobson, Shelby Smith and Donna Pettit.

Gardner Advisory Council President Kevin Christman says the community wanted to reclaim the cul-de-sac.

"It was my students who said, 'Well, you give it to the children,' " Walsh says. "Turns out, the grandmothers wanted it, too."

On one post, four generations of a family are represented. The top half of another post was created by residents who live around the corner of Delmas Avenue and Virginia Street.

Delmas Avenue resident Reymundo Mendez says he included many Christian symbols in his portion.

"God has been blessing our community," says Mendez.

Another dream tile reads: "The sky's the limit, reach for the stars."

The project demonstrates the level of creativity in the area, Martinez says. Before, neighborhood youth might have tried to earn recognition by spraying graffiti; being involved in art projects will help them take more responsibility, he says.

"It makes them feel like they're part of the community," Martinez says.

The project, which took more than a year, involved youth and adults coming together twice a week in the fall of 2004 at the Gardner Community Center. Walsh and her students then cast the wax tiles in bronze at the university foundry.

The final posts stand between 4 to 12 feet tall, coming to a point at the top, and are finished off with bronze sculptures. Three of the peripheral posts hold bronze globes, and four posts host statues representing the four elements--earth, air, water and fire.

The entire project was scheduled for completion by June 2005, but creating the wax tiles and casting the bronze took more time than planned.

One of the snags was the need for more "dreams," after Walsh and her students exhausted their efforts at the Gardner Community Center. The team than dropped off materials and directions at people's homes to generate more tiles.

Another snag occurred when Gardner Academy changed leadership and curriculum. Schoolchildren from the elementary school were supposed to compile a narrative that would accompany the project in English classes, but that aspect of the project couldn't go forward because of changes in the school, Walsh says.

In the end the project took on a life of its own.

"I was amazed at how much participation we actually got," Walsh says.

At a July 27 celebration, Gilbert Briseno, 13, happily pointed out the clown he created two years ago.

"I like to be a comic; that's why I did that," Gilbert said.

He pointed out a peace symbol on another tile, made by a friend who has since moved from the area.

"He did a peace sign because he wanted peace in the community," he said.