Delicato Balencia

Delicato Balencia, 2000

William Carlson

Armitage and Clark Streets

            This multiple-ton, geometric granite and limestone sculpture by William Carson (born 1950) was featured in “Pier Walk 1999,” an outdoor exhibition of sculpture held at Navy Pier. Carlson, an Ohio native, began his teaching career in 1972 at the University of Illinois in Champaign-Urbana and his massive stone sculptures are sited throughout the Midwest. Typical of his work is the combination of smooth, shiny surfaces with textured aspects, as well as a sense of tension between the monumentality of the stone and the careful use of negative space. Potential movement is implied by the placement of a stone pillar atop a striped stone sphere.

            Donated by the S. J. Marx Family and the Ken Saunders Family, the site in the 43^rd ward was chosen by Michael Lash, Director of Public Art for the City of Chicago. Directly across from the Lincoln Park Zoo Administration Building, an 1899 limestone structure and former Academy of Science Building, Delicato Balencia enjoys a privileged location in a busy pedestrian area. 

Other works: 

• Allele