Sustainable Lawrence Hopes Community Sculpture Will Raise Awareness About Many Uses for Recycled Items

A few months ago the question was asked, “What would a sculpture look like if only recycled materials were used?” The question then expanded: “What would the sculpture look like if many different people were involved with each making a small part of it.”

To find the answer to those questions, look no further than the front lawn of the Lawrence Township Municipal Building, where on Saturday, July 2, members of Sustainable Lawrence assembled a sculpture made from recycled materials. The art work will remain on display through Labor Day weekend.

Tahirih Smith, acting executive director for Sustainable Lawrence, described the sculpture as a “round coliseum-looking structure with arches you can walk through. It really makes you feel like you are entering a very happy town when you drive by it!”

Jeanne Muzi, a first-grade teacher at Ben Franklin Elementary School, described it as a celebration.

“It celebrates summer – July 4th to Labor Day. It celebrates community – it is many hands; when you bring it all together the whole is more than the parts. It celebrates sustainability and recycling – all of the parts have been used before: plastic bags, ribbons, poles, etc.”

The bright colors and whimsical nature of the sculpture truly capture the essence of a summer day.

Muzi said she, Ben Franklin art teacher Anthony Colavita and Celia Bavier made up the committee that came up with the idea of the sculpture as a way “to make people more aware of Sustainable Lawrence.”

Donations were accepted. The Bike Exchange of Trenton donated old, unusable bike rims for the cause. Teachers brought in plastic table clothes that were cut into strips. Others brought in plastic bottles.

Beginning in the middle of June, art sessions were formed. “Over 50 kids wove wheels in the Lawrence Recreation Art Camp,” Muzi said. “In Camp Mercer another 50 kids wove wheels. From scout troops to preschoolers and their grandmothers,” many generations were involved with the creation of the sculpture. “It was a neat thing.”

Muzi estimated that about 250 Lawrence residents touched the sculpture in some way.  “It was completed because everyone came together and worked together. The idea of community really made a difference.”

She hopes the project teaches people about recycling and how things can be used again.

“It was a great feeling when it was put together. I hope the kids who helped make it go out there and find the wheels that they made,” Muzi said.

The Sustainable Lawrence art committee offered its thanks to everyone who helped make the sculpture possible, including Township Manager Richard Krawczun who offered the use of the municipal building’s front lawn and the members of the township Public Works Department who “expertly” raised the poles that were used as the base of the sculpture.

Also thanked was Steve Groeger, township superintendent of recreation, who gave permission for the committee to go into the summer camp and work with the counselors and children to create parts of the sculpture. Councilwoman Pam Mount and Councilman Jim Kownacki were also singled out for their assistance and support.

Hours after the sculpture was raised on July 2, Lawrence Township was visited by a significant thunderstorm. Muzi went out the next morning to see how much damage done. She was pleased to see “every streamer and wheel was still standing.” If it can endure a storm like that, it will be fine until Labor Day weekend, she said.

“When we take it down Labor Day weekend, everything will be packed away. You never know when it will come out again,” she said.

So next time you are driving along Route 2306, pull into the municipal parking lot, park your car for a few minutes, and walk around the sculpture. Then send us a message and let us know what you think about the art work.