Artwork Detail

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Four Songs of Motion

Artist: Trachtenberg, Amy

Object Date: 2011

Medium: Glass

Department(s): Mental Health

Address Name: Olive View Children and Family Wellbeing Center

Supervisorial District: 3

Amy Trachtenberg and Jeffrey Miller created an artwork for the Oliver View Psychiatric Urgent Care Center that supports the Department of Mental Health’s values of hope, wellness and recovery and is a welcoming environment for children, adolescents and adults who are treated here. Clients referred to this center are typically experiencing acute emotional crises and may also suffer from co-occurring (mental health and substance abuse) disorders. The goal of the center is to provide support and interventions for individuals of all ages to ensure their ability to thrive in their families, schools and communities. Four Songs of Motion consists of several distinct elements that reflect the artists' engagement with the clinic users' desire to be closer to the natural world and a flowing sense of order. Interlocking circles and repetitive motifs recur throughout the work. Approaching the building, four pigmented concrete Stepping Stones are embedded with conjoining metal circles mirroring the development of relationships both human and geometric. In the entry and waiting area of the clinic, hangs a suspended sculpture made of 26 cast acrylic disks patterned with leaf shadows representing the city's name, Sylmar or "sea of trees." Facing the sculpture is an 11 foot architecturally scaled painting on wood panels. The sections of the abstract painting refer to a sea and sun-bleached landscape with the imprint of textiles running in vertical stripes. Four Stepping Stones connect the interior with the exterior courtyard. The courtyard is enclosed with multi-colored polycarbonate panels casting a prism of warm hues throughout the space.:

Amy Trachtenberg's work can also be seen at The Ashland Youth Center in Alameda County, Children's Hospital, Oakland and the Hillview Library in San José, CA. Her paintings and sculpture are in many private and public collections including the Legion of Honor in San Francisco and The San José Museum of Art. Jeffrey Miller is a practicing landscape architect as well as a collaborator on art projects. He has designed for green schoolyards, public plazas, multi-family affordable housing and sustainable campuses for corporations and universities. Miller holds a BA from Bard College, and an MLA from the University of Massachusetts.: