LA CITY MALL, OPEN HAND - 1974
Variously known as Open Hand, Hold the Bird With an Open Hand, and the Robert J. Stevenson Fountain, this work was created by Tom Van Sant with landscape architect Howard Troller and mosaic artist Hans Scharff. Van Sant was responsible for the enameled cylinder in the center of the fountain, which he described as a “fountain sculpture” and a “totem pole.”
The cylinder stands in the center of a circular brick-edged basin, which is lined with orange mosaic tiles that spiral toward the pole. The fountain was one of seven water features at the Mall. It originally had a “pool of centrifugal jets”. [1] The piece was named for Councilman Robert J. Stevenson, who represented the City’s 13th District from 1969-1975.
In its form, materials, stylized imagery, and color scheme Open Hand resembles Van Sant’s larger work Celebration of Life (1972) and was likely made using a similar technique.
The imagery at the top of the cylinder indicates the faces of stylized bearded men, who peek from beneath an orange, conical ‘cap.’ The lower half of the column comprises dark orange pill-shapes embellished with organic patterns, alternating with beige and dark brown vertical lines. From a distance they suggest the possibility of legs. Open hands are depicted in various shades of brown in between the areas described. Above them, perhaps released by them, are birds [likely doves].
Open Hand was designed for “the nation’s first municipally owned and operated office and shopping complex,” for which Van Sant also made the LA City Mall Pedestrian Bridge. [2] Its memorial function and use of stylized representation suggest the influence of Tlingit Memorial Poles from the Pacific Southwest.
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City of Los Angeles Civic Center, North Mall
300 North Main Street, Los Angeles, CA 90012
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1974
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Cornell, Bridges, and Troller, landscape architects
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Fired ceramic on steel
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Unknown
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Unknown
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The City of Los Angeles
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The “totem pole” remains in place and appears to be undamaged. The nozzles of the “centrifugal jets” are visible in the fountain’s basin, but no water plays.
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TVS Digital Record
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Open Hand was designed for “the nation’s first municipally owned and operated office and shopping complex,” for which Van Sant also made the LA City Mall Pedestrian Bridge. [3]
A sunken, multi-level series of shops and public plazas, the 7.25-acre Mall was funded by the city and its parking authority to “make a positive contribution to the beauty and public use and enjoyment of the Civic Center. Provide at close proximity restaurants, shopping, personal services and parking for Civic Center employees and visitors. [And] Bring maximum shopping and parking revenues.” [4]
Planned to function as “a traditional town square – a place for community meetings, retail, civic institutions, and the display of public art.” [5]
In addition to Van Sant's Pedestrian Bridge and Open Hand, other public artworks commissioned for the Mall included Joseph Young’s Triforium, mosaic-lined fountains by Hans Scharff, two stainless steel sculptures in pools by Jan Peter Stern and, at 200 Main Street, two tile murals by Millard Sheets.
Mosaic artist Hans Scharff had been “the Nazi’s lead Luftwaffe interrogator during World War II.” [6] After the war he “taught classes on interrogation for the U.S. Air Force in exchange for safety within the U.S.” Having embarked on a second successful career as a mosaic artist, he moved to Los Angeles, where he “is known for creating the marbled floor within the California state capitol building, entry ramps at Epcot Center and the eagle floor located at the University of Southern California.” [7]
[1] The Cultural Landscape Foundation, “Los Angeles Mall,” https://www.tclf.org. Last Accessed December 22, 2023.
[2] Dick Turpin, “Los Angeles Mall More Than 75% Complete,” Los Angeles Times, Mar 3, 1974, pg. J1.
[3] Dick Turpin, “Los Angeles Mall More Than 75% Complete,” Los Angeles Times, Mar 3, 1974, pg. J1.
[4] Dick Turpin, “LA Mall More Than 75% Complete: Seven Lease Commitments,” Los Angeles Times, Mar 3, 1974, pg. J1.
[5] The Cultural Landscape Foundation, “Los Angeles Mall,” www.tclf.org. Last accessed December 22, 2023.
[6] Bethaney Phillips, “How a Former Nazi interrogator left a permanent mark on Disney,” We Are The Mighty,October 25, 2022, www.wearethemighty.com Last accessed December 22, 2023.
[7] Ibid.
