Pax-Americana
Bal Harbour Village and Levittown, N.Y. were incorporated in 1946/1947. The post-war period throughout the U.S.A. forever changed cities being it was the birth of the suburbs creating the landscapes we know today. The sculpture of the “American house” was three-dimensional in form but the windows, doors and slatting was an illusion created by imposing a digital facsimile creating the illusion that it was the “Cape Cod” model home from Levittown, considered to be the first planned suburban community in the country. The Americana sign is made of mirror finished stainless steel and was located in front of the newly inaugurated St. Regis Bal Harbour Resort and Spa. Originally, the Americana Hotel stood on the site of the St. Regis which was designed by Morris Lapidus who branded Miami Beach as the American Riviera and also designed: The Fontainebleau Hotel, The Eden Roc Resort and Lincoln Road Mall.
AN AMERICAN FALLA
March 19th, 2013 / Miami, FL
The sculpture, a scaled down version of the model home from Levittown was transported from Bal Harbour to Bi-Centennial Park in downtown Miami that is now been renamed Museum Park. “Levittown” was developed in response to the imminent housing needs in the U.S. following the Second World War, President Eisenhower began developing the American Interstate Highway System during the same period of time that Levittown was being built, this created an urban plight to the suburbs. Ironically, sixty years later, many Americans are returning to live in “urban centers” leading many academics and scholars to ac knowledge a perceptual shift in what we consider to be the “American Dream”.
HISTORY OF LAS FALLAS
The tradition of Las Fallas stems from the 16th Century when Spanish carpenters would perform a spring-cleaning by setting ablaze the remnants of their workshops. On the eve of March 19th, the Feast of Saint Jospeh, wooden sculptures whose subject matter is both political and satirical in nature are set ablaze on honor the Patron Saint Joseph, which was celebrated as Father’s Day and coincidentally the artist fathers Birthday.
AMERICANA
The Americana sign was first exhibited in Bal Harbour, FL as part of the “Pax Americana” installation. The sign was acquired by the Crystal Bridges of American Art in Bentonville, Arkansas as part of the exhibition “State of the Art.”
The word “AMERICANA” is a reference to a broad category of objects and symbols that are inherently “American.” including Coca-Cola, road trips, blues music, Ford cars, and the idea of the American Dream. The reflective surface of these cut-metal letters reflects not only the viewer, but the landscape beyond to indicate how the idea of America expands beyond the confines of the United States, suggesting that “Pan American culture is without borders.”
