Sculpture brings images of Hawaii to Canalfront Park

The third and final installation of the Lewes Public Art Committee has nestled into Canalfront Park, finding a home among nature and the steel of the ships.

Letha Wilson’s “Double Arc Leaves and Lava” is one of a series of pieces featuring her outdoor sculptures. Combining photographs she has taken over the past 20 years with material sturdy enough to withstand elements of nature, Wilson's intent is to expand landscape photography as a medium and push it as far as it can go.

The shapes themselves are tantalizing for the eyes to gaze upon, and the geometry of the three pieces allows for a different image at almost any angle. Grounding the sculpture to its natural environment are the photos UV printed onto corten steel. Wilson took the photograph of the leaves in Kauai, Hawaii, and the photograph of the lava near the Amboy Crater in California. The corten steel used in the sculpture is the same material used to build ships, much like the Lightship Overfalls that sits behind the piece.

While some art is simply for looking and not touching, Wilson said this sculpture is sturdy enough to withstand light interactions such as taking photos.

“The piece is inviting you to walk around, see the different shadows and how it looks at different times of day,” Wilson said. 

Assembly took about one day, and Wilson said it was easy to assemble because it was fabricated in a way that allowed the pieces to slot together. The sculpture weighs about 1,000 pounds, with three pieces weighing about 300 pounds each. The installation is temporary and will remain in Canalfront Park for the next few months.

“Maybe it’s a sculpture people want to revisit different times of day and just see how the light effects it and to reconsider how this landscape changed from a long time ago,” Wilson said. “Even reflect on their own personal travels to different places or just enjoy the look of it.”