When I was in high school, I was given an assignment by my art teacher. Research, photograph, and write blurbs about fifteen sculptures in the downtown Houston area. I then was to give a presentation to my art class, along with slides.
That was probably the best assignment I have ever been given. It was right up my alley, as it involved both art and downtown. Plus, I got to learn random facts about our city that most people never notice.
At the time, there was an architecture firm on Timmons, near 59, that published a guide to the sculptures. There was a map, as well as artist's and sculpture's names, and date of installation. I drove around downtown, Instamatic Camera in hand. I later went to the library to research the sculptures and artists.
One of the sculptures led to my introduction of a now favorite space downtown, Tranquility Park. The sculpture was installed in the fountain itself. Pretty holographic, digital columns, that oddly added to the already beautiful fountain. There was quite a crowd on that Saturday, and on the subsequent Saturdays that I brought all of my friends to see the amazing park. The many levels, the grassy hills, the metal water columns, the walkways over the water, and the many shade trees.
It is a nice place to walk through, relax in, and also sit and enjoy the International Festival. I sat on one of the many hills and watched Los Skarnales, a local ska band, perform during the International Festival a little over a year ago.
My report in high school only referred to the sculpture, so it was years before I learned anything about the park. It's named for The Sea of Tranquility.
The park was dedicated in 1979, to mark the ten year anniversary of Apollo 11's lunar landing. As a tribute to Houston's mention in the initial landing, "Houston, Tranquility Base here. The Eagle has landed," is inscribed in fifteen languages at one entrance. In fact, the entire surface of the park with all of the hills, stairs, and carved-out niches is meant to resemble a lunar landscape. read more