New Public Art in Dorchester

October 23, 2010 by PaulM Posted in Culture, History Leave a Comment

Boston.com today has a slide show of images of an ambitious new public art installation in Dorchester’s Everett Square. Artist Laura Baring-Gould’s bronze objects all refer to elements of the community’s history and culture. See the slide show here.

 Everett Square has been home to Clapp's Favorite Pear, an enormous bronze fruit that sits beside the busy Dorchester intersection, since 2007. Now, Laura Baring-Gould, the artist behind the pear, has installed 10 smaller sculptures around it with historical inscriptions. Dorchester was an agricultural center, and the Clapp pear was cultivated in Dorchester in the 19th century. 'For me, the pear is a wonderful metaphor for the people of Dorchester. Because it's known to have a tough skin, and be sweet inside,' said Baring-Gould, who wanted to make a statue that was about the neighborhood's history, and 'not just the history of another person on a horse.'

(Web photo by Cara Bayles courtesy of boston.com)