KPFA-FM Music Dept. ➔ Bonnie Sherk’s Report on her Portable Parks
Analog Audio
Event Type
InterviewsOrigin
KPFAIdentifier
AM.1970.07.21Program Length
19 minDates
1970-07-21 | createdDescription
Charles Amirkhanian interviews artist Bonnie Sherk about her environmental art piece “Portable Parks,” in which a freeway on-ramp and a couple of concrete traffic islands were temporarily turned into idyllic oases of green, complete with strips of live turf, palm trees, and grazing Guernsey calves. These conceptual art installations were financed with prize money won in a San Francisco Museum of Art Society competition and were warmly received by the public, despite some slow downs in traffic as drivers tried to make sense of this sudden change in scenery. This interview, recorded after the fact, contains detailed information on the response to the work by highway patrol, who were not unanimously enamored with Sherk’s concept, as well as some concerns that arose due to the potential dangers such a distracting event may have had on passing drivers. However, despite these issues, the installations were generally regarded as quite a success and no serious injuries or accidents resulted.Genres
Interactive ArtSubjects
Public artConceptual art
Environment (Art)