Declaration Is Now Months Away From Being Dismantled and Transferred to di Suvero’s Sculpture Park in Petaluma, CA.
By Zach Armstrong
Over two decades ago, a 60-foot-tall I-beam sculpture weighing 25 tons was installed along the Venice Beach Boardwalk as part of the Venice Family Clinic’s annual art walk benefit.
It was originally intended to stand for a few months. But since installment, Mark di Suvero’s artwork Declaration remains and has become one of the most recognizable fixtures of the oceanside landscape–a focal point for meditations, poetry readings, workouts, political rallies and more. Two intersecting V-shaped configurations constitute the piece: one tilted in the direction of Downtown Los Angeles, the other toward the ocean. Its title derives from Martin Luther King Jr.’s interpretation of the term, emphasizing its application to everyone.
“The piece seemed to me very natural there … I tried to give people a feeling of open space–a sense of spirit and capacity.” di Suvero, 91, told the New York Times in 2019.
But Venice is set to lose this landmark.
After a failed multi-year effort by the L.A. Louver Art Gallery (which subsidized its 2001 installment) to generate enough financing from either private donors or public funds to keep the monument in place, Declaration is now months away from being dismantled and transferred to di Suvero’s sculpture park in Petaluma, CA.
The L.A. Board of Recreation and Park Commissioners approved “Declaration”’s permanent placement in 2004 on the condition that LAG purchase and donate it to the city. But that purchase never materialized, although the gallery has covered insurance to indemnify the city as well as maintenance. Director of LAG Kimberly Davis stated in February that, while the city once conceived a $100,000 fund to reimburse the gallery, no compensation was provided.
In recent years, LAG sought a benefactor, underwent a fundraising campaign and held several discussions with city officials for public funds. Former councilmember Mike Bonin once described those meetings to NYT as attempts by LAG to negotiate for a few million dollars; a sum he said wasn’t feasible “when we have so many other pressing demands.”
“The Declaration statue has been part of the Venice Beach landscape for over 20 years, making it a unique feature for locals and visitors alike.” City Councilwoman Traci Park’s office stated in an emailed response. “While we’d love to secure the statue’s future, current budget limitations mean public funding isn’t feasible. We’ve connected the owners with county and cultural affairs teams to explore alternative funding, but realistically, private support is the most viable path forward.”
But no benefactors have sufficiently stepped up to the plate. In terms of private donations, the gallery raised less than $2 million via pledges–a fraction of estimates on the piece’s price tag. Its retail value is approximately $7 million, according to Davis.
Since the money, effort or motivation to acquire the artwork seems to not exist, di Suvero wants it back.
The Board of Recreation and Park Commissioners authorized the conceptual removal in January. Although an exact timeline for displacement hasn’t been established, as LAG works with local officials to acquire a removal permit, LAG Founding Director Goulds told Mirror Media Group it will likely be in “early 2025.”
Although the towering sculpture is experiencing what appears as its waning days on the tourist-heavy boardwalk, LAG is leaving the door ajar for a patron to take initiative in time before the dismantling process moves forward.
“We’ve learned that so many people don’t really realize that the piece isn’t owned by the city already.” said Goulds, who expressed optimism that District 11 locals could still galvanize support needed to preserve the piece. “The time is probably good now to revisit that fundraising. I’m just very hopeful that it will be achieved, but at this stage, one wonders if it will happen.”
If no funding is secured, Declaration will join other works by di Suvero in Northern California. Adjacent to his Petaluma studio, the renowned artist is establishing a sculpture park on what Goulds describes as a “large piece of land.” Preferably, the artwork would remain in a place that holds significance in the life of this accomplished creative.
As a teenager, di Suvero built a boat and embarked on a solo voyage along the coast of California, according to The New Yorker. He landed in Santa Barbara where he lived in a tree house and studied philosophy, sculpture and painting. Soon after, Mark arrived in Venice Beach in the late 1950s, when developed relationships with the beachside neighborhood’s local artists, according to Goulds. Today, his work can be found throughout Los Angeles.
Born in Shanghai to Italian parents and immigrating to the U.S. at age eight, di Suvero is recognized as a pioneer in the creative use of steel for complex constructions. He has won the Smithsonian Archives of American Art Medal and the American Academy of Arts and Letters Gold Medal for Sculpture. In 1985, Di Suvero founded Socrates Sculpture Park in Queens, New York, which later became a public city park.
