Manhattan Beach Uses Park Benches to Showcase Public Art Project

The Manhattan Beach Cultural Arts Program has installed a temporary public art piece in Parque Culiacan that incorporates six benches that have each been decorated with photo montages and text from author Alan Lightman’s book “Einstein’s Dreams.”

The “Invisible Clock,” designed by Carolyn Speranza, examines the nature of passing time. Lightman’s 1993 book describes time and timing being altered and the theme of his book is weaved through the three pairs of benches along with text from the book.

One pair of benches incorporates pictures of the beach, the sea, sunbathers from the ‘20s and ‘50s and fishing circa 1918. Manhattan Beach native Helen Sinsabaugh is depicted in two pictures of yesteryear; in one, he is wading in the water with her friends and in the other she is holding a fish.

Another pair explores what would happen if people had to live their lives in one day. The benches depict baby hands and aging hands to show a timeline along with the axis of the earth as it spins.

The third pair of benches looks at time becoming more constricted and organized with layers of photographic images. Grass and flowers form the backdrop for this piece of artwork while an Egyptian shadow board and digital clock float in the foreground.

Speranza, a Pittsburgh-based artist, said she applied to Manhattan Beach for public artworks grant and decided on the bench project because she was enamored by the park, which overlooks the Pacific Ocean at the top of a hill.

“Benches are about time,” said Speranza, who has held several art shows around the nation. “People sit, wait, meditate, read a book . . . in a nutshell, they pass time.”

Manhattan Beach Cultural Arts manager Howard Spector said that the benches that make up the “Invisible Clock” exhibit replaced six dilapidated benches and will be on display through June. He said the artwork, which is one of 22 temporary exhibits that have been created in the city since 1989, may become permanent because it also serves a practical function.