The Fin Project: From Swords Into Plowshares
Artist
John T. Young
MediumHigh-tensile steel fused to syntactic foam, carboline mb 133 satin black paint, concrete
Dimensions144 x 3600 x 6000 in. (365.8 x 9144 x 15240 cm)
ClassificationsSculpture
Credit LineGift to the City of Seattle by the artist and the Swords into Plowshares Corporation, Max Gurich, benefactor; U.S. Navy
Description: The Fin Project is a major environmentally-scaled sculptural installation on the west shore of Lake Washington. Located on the north loop trail of Warren G. Magnuson Park, the Fin Project is built from the recycled diving plane fins from 22 decommissioned 1960’s United States Navy attack submarines. The artwork, which resembles a pod of Orca whales, consists of hydrodynamically-designed fins, placed at various angles and heights. It traverses a length of 410 feet and a width of 90 feet. Each fin is 10,000 pounds.
Artist Statement: This artwork speaks to the idea of turning the ultimate weapons -nuclear submarines- into art. It represents an extremely important period in American recycling in an ecologically sound way, and it represents a significant amount of the national deficit being returned to the people for their enjoyment and appreciation.
Watch: Seattle Channel Profile of Artist John T. Young (2007)
