Earthquake

Mike Shaffer

2010  |  Acrylic on reclaimed wood

This vibrant, red sculpture is one of three works by Maryland artist Mike Shaffer that were on public view in Reston Town Square Park during the “gaps” exhibition at the Greater Reston Arts Center in collaboration with Public Art Reston and Washington Sculptors Group in June and July of 2010. Earthquake comprises stacked timbers in a jumbled, haphazard pile to evoke a child’s block tower once standing tall and now knocked over—reminiscent of the game Jenga. In a statement for the exhibition, Shaffer commented, “I want my bright and playful structures, unconventional, unfamiliar and unusual as they may be, to make people stop and search in their minds for experiences they can relate them to and then say, ‘Oh wow!’ when they realize, maybe from these titles, what they are all about.”

Sponsored by Greater Reston Arts Center, Public Art Reston, Washington Sculptors Group