City Candy
Pierre Clerk, New York
1983
Aluminum
This brightly painted two-story abstract is a landmark along Summit Street, drawing attention to the Vistula Parking Garage. It rests on two bases, beginning at the garage’s tunnel level and extending upward to the sidewalk outside the garage. The sculpture, fabricated by Malleable Metals Incorporated, Bethany Connecticut, is made of welded 3/8” aluminum plate and measures 42 feet by 48 feet by 24 feet.
About the Title
Press Release (ca 1984)
“City Candy” has been selected as the name for the red and white sculpture located on Summit Street at Vistula Parking Facility. The winning name was entered in the “Name the Sculpture” contest by Brent G. Dennis (Toledo, OH). As first prize winner, Mr. Dennis will receive an all-expenses paid weekend for two at the Sofitel, the new hotel to be constructed on the river front in downtown Toledo. Four other prize winners will receive a selection of Toledo Alive items. The winners and their entries are Mrs. A. Grove (Toledo, OH) “Minus Blue”, Michele Barnes (Toledo, OH) “Peppermint Summit”, Wilfred Williams (Sylvania, OH) “Emerging Vista”, and Thomas L. Kovacik (Toledo, OH) “Up and Over”.
Letter To Linda Dove, ACGT Program Coordinator, 3/5/85
Mrs. Dove:
I thought you might be interested to know what the person who named “City Candy” is up to these days. [Attached to the letter is an announcement of the opening of Mr. Dennis’s clinical social work private practice.]
I greatly admire the sculpture and am continually pleased to be able to have some small input to the cultural environment of my home town.
Letter to Brent G. Dennis, 3/29/85
Dear Dr. Dennis:
Thank you for your letter to update us on your activities. “City Candy” continues to be a controversial sculpture with opinions being voiced strongly on both sides. The Arts Commission feels good art always incites comment and dialogue is to be encouraged. Personally, I think “City Candy” is a wonderful name for the piece as it indicates a playfulness that I think the artist intended.
I have enclosed a copy of the Citywide Contemporary Sculpture Exhibition catalogue for you. “City Candy” is pictured on page 60.
About The Artist
Pierre Clerk was born in Atlanta, Georgia on April 26, 1928. He studied fine arts at McGill University, Loyola College and at the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts in Montreal, Canada. He traveled abroad to seek further instruction at the Academy Julien in Paris, France and the Accademia di belle Arti in Florence Italy.
Pierre Clerk has been widely recognized for his stellar work in and contribution to modern art. Select awards and grants include: Canadian Council Awards, 1971,72; Tamarind Fel, Albuquerque, New Mexico, 1972; United States Information Service Exhibition Grant, 1977; Municipal Art Society Grant, 1977; United States Department Travel Grant, 1977-78.
Collections of his work are held in numerous museums and galleries in the United States and Canada. A select group includes: Museum of Modern Art, New York; Solomon R. Guggenhiem Museum, New York Whitney Museum of American Art, New York National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.; National Gallery of Canada, Ottawa; Montreal Museum of Fine Arts, Canada; Rose Art Museum, Brandeis University, Waltham MA; Glasgow Art Museum, Scotland; New Mexico University, Albuquerque, New Mexico; Queens College, New York; State University of New York, Purchase, New York.
