Hal Ingberg’s large public art work in Gatineau is called Papa, but it’s no companion piece to Louise Bourgeois’ 30-foot-tall giant bronze spider named Maman that stands in front of the National Gallery of Canada.
Papa is much more abstract. It’s a four-section structure made up of multi-coloured, transparent glass walls that creates a small public plaza at the intersection of des Allumettières and Maisonneuve boulevards.
Across from the glass structure is a bench so people can observe shadows produced by six different-coloured glass panes.
“This work is intended to create something where we slow down even for just a moment. The fast process of living slows down and we become a community,” said Ingberg, a Montreal-based artist and architect.
The panes start at 10 feet tall, but rise to a peak over 40 feet — a tower for fast moving cars — with a slower, smaller scale closer to the path further down the road.
Papa is the first non-commemorative piece of public art commissioned by the National Capital Commission in almost 20 years and forms part of the larger development for the area as gateway to Confederation Boulevard.
