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Vol. 4, No. 2
Winter 2006-7

published by the

Kennesaw State University

College of the Arts

Finno-American sculptor Eino (above) created "Spaceship Earth" in honor of the late environmentalist David Brower.

Visual art student Jason McCoy worked with Eino to install the monumental sculpture.

Visual art student Kyle Renz also worked on the sculpture.

A time capsule filled with these items was inserted into the capsule prior to its completion.

Students and faculty braved a chilly October day for the unveiling of "Spaceship Earth" near the university's newest and largest building, the Social Sciences Building.

Installing a Landmark:

Spaceship Earth Arrives

By Jennifer Hafer

It was the opportunity of a lifetime: working side by side with renowned Finno-American sculptor Eino on a 17.5-ton sculpture conceived as a memorial to the late environmentalist David Brower.

College of the Arts students Kyle Renz and Jason McCoy spent hundreds of hours this summer helping Eino erect the 15-foot-diameter blue Brazilian quartzite sphere at the southeast corner of the new Social Science Building. Unveiled on Oct. 20, Spaceship Earth consists of 85 separate pieces and features a life-size bronze figure of Brower near its apex and approximately 1,200 additional bronze pieces, which are attached to the face of the globe.

“Anytime you’re working with another artist, you learn a little bit about that person and what drives them and where some of their inspiration comes from,” McCoy says. “Eino is very passionate. He gives 100 percent all the time, and it’s easy to get caught up in his worth ethic.”

McCoy served as Eino’s heavy equipment operator, while Renz actually worked with the stone, first polishing it and then assisting Eino with sculpting.

“It was the hardest work I’ve ever done in my life,” Renz says. “We called [the quartz] the great silent beast. It’s like we were taming something wild. It feels like it’s alive in some way.”

But, it wasn’t all work and no play for the apprentices.

Renz says he and Eino began most work days sitting under a nearby oak tree, drinking coffee and eating ginger cookies.

“We talked about life, spirituality, art,” Renz says. “I learned a lot about the practicality of living as an artist, and Eino stressed the importance of being honest with yourself and not selling out.”

Spaceship Earth’s placement on the grounds of Kennesaw State University is itself a testament to Eino’s commitment to his own artistic vision.

Before deciding to place Spaceship Earth on the KSU campus, Eino refused several installation sites proposed by Brower’s hometown of Berkley, Calif., including one next to a heavily congested highway and another atop a landfill.

Brower, who died in 2000, is credited with saving the Grand Canyon from a government plan to flood it, saving stands of ancient redwoods, helping to pass the Wilderness and Wild River Acts and putting vast tracts of Alaska and smaller parts of Cape Cod off limits to development. He also fought to save the Florida Everglades, parts of which are preserved by legislation President Clinton signed into effect a few weeks after Brower’s death.

“Spaceship Earth’s message of environmental responsibility means a lot to me,” Renz says. “Working on this sculpture motivates me to continue living the lifestyle I’m living, trying to conserve resources as best as I can.”

Kennesaw State’s relationship with Eino dates back to 1993, when Roberta Griffin, then director of galleries, approached College of Science and Mathematics Dean Laurence Peterson about adorning the lobby of the newly constructed Clendenin Building with sculpture.

“We went to visit Eino in Jasper, Ga., where he served as the city’s artist-in-residence,” Griffin recalls. “During that visit, I remember seeing the original plans for Spaceship Earth, but I never dreamed we’d have any connection with it.”

As a result of that meeting, Eino granted the university a two-year loan of 20 Mexican abstract quartz sculptures; a typographic map; a large, carved wood wall piece; and a sculpture, “The Pink Lady,” which was formerly housed on the second floor of the Visual Arts Building. Eino also lectured on campus as part of the opening of his exhibition in the Clendenin Building.

“The university’s relationship with Eino is an example of how you set up a network of friends on campus, and with artists out in the world,” Griffin says.

And, it’s those same types of relationships that will continue to propel the arts forward at Kennesaw State, according to McCoy.

“I think the landing of Spaceship Earth at Kennesaw State shows a little bit of a shift toward an openness to the arts on campus,” he says. “I hope that everyone on campus and in the administration who has helped out with this project keeps an open mind and tries to bring more opportunities like this to campus; it’s good for the students to have an opportunity to work with a professional artist like that, and it’s good for the campus.”

“I think the university is really lucky to have this piece,” McCoy continues. “This is a landmark piece of art, and hopefully, it broadens people’s perspectives.”

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Editor's Note: On December 27, 2006, Spaceship Earth collapsed. No one was injured. Eino and the university intend to rebuild the sculpture.

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