New public art piece in downtown Fort Worth appears to be a hit

September 12,2014

September 12, 2014

Fort Worth now has a remarkable yellow ribbon, one so big that it could never be tied round the old oak tree.

It is a 13-foot-diameter metal sculpture by Mexican artist Yvonne Domenge that has just been installed on the plaza in front of the city’s Public Safety and Courts building at Throckmorton and Ninth streets.

The Tabachin Ribbon, one of six sculptures the artist created for the temporary Millennium Park exhibition in Chicago four years ago, was a gift to Fort Worth. It turned out to be an expensive present, as the original $60,000 cost for moving, storing and installing the piece escalated to $137,000, almost equaling the $150,000 value of the public art.

The Fort Worth City Council, after deliberation and some admonishment of the city’s art commission for not staying abreast of the mounting costs, approved the funding for the latest work of Cowtown’s growing public art collection.

It was the right decision.

The Ribbon, a striking work located in one of the most high-trafficked public areas, is a unique piece that is already drawing attention and conversation, something great works of art should do.

Its bright yellow color stands out against the black granite of the Public Safety Building. And the location puts it in close contact with other important public art — the fountain and marble sculpture of the sleeping panther in Fort Worth’s first park, right across the street; and the Parking in Color “fins” that are part of the municipal parking garage that serves the Fort Worth Convention Center and Omni Hotel.

Already, people are playfully adding their own descriptive nicknames to the sculpture, a Fort Worth police officer said this week. Some say it looks like discarded banana peels and others have called it a wad of yellow paper, he said.

Regardless what you call it, Tabachin Ribbon has become a hit even before it’s been formally dedicated, an event scheduled for Oct. 15 during the city employees’ Hispanic Heritage Celebration. The artist is expected to attend.