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Artist removes color from multicultural sculpture days before opening; BPAC accepts stainless-steel version amid objections
Summary
The artist selected for a multicultural sculpture replaced a color option with a stainless-steel finish just days before installation; BPAC accepted the change for the temporary exhibition but commissioners called the switch misguided and offensive and asked staff to notify the selection panel.
Staff told the Beautification and Public Art Commission on May 11 that Robert L. Barnum, the selected artist for the multicultural park sculpture titled "Mosaic," informed them seven business days before installation that he would not apply the previously approved decorative color and instead would install the piece in polished/matte stainless steel. Kristen (staff) read the artist's message, quoting the artist: "The decorative rainbow colors defeat the sculptures broad-based content... Decorative color as applied paint of any kind will only limit and at some level defeat this important public statement."
Commissioners reacted sharply. Multiple selection panel members said the colored option had been a deliberate part of the selection and that Barnum’s characterization of rainbow colors as exclusionary was inaccurate and offensive. One commissioner called the decision a "bait and switch." Another said the stainless-steel finish itself was not inherently offensive but that the late change deprived the selection process of its intent. Staff said the choice to accept the stainless-steel version was pragmatic: the sculpture pad would otherwise sit empty at installation and the substitute materials were not themselves objectionable in the temporary exhibition. Staff committed to sending a full summary and the meeting video to the selection panelists this week.
The commission asked staff to notify selection panelists and to record the objections in the public record. Staff also said future submissions from this artist would be flagged for panel communication about late changes. The sculpture will be installed in stainless steel for the temporary exhibition; commissioners asked that the broader selection process and messaging be clarified in follow-up communications.
What happens next: Staff will email the selection panelists a summary of the artist's late change and the commission's comments. The exhibition opening will proceed as scheduled with the stainless finish; staff advised the commission that replacing the installation at short notice would delay the exhibit by months.
