Los Altos Seen: 'Danseuse' Leaps Onto State Street
With artist Jeff Owen present, the first of seven sculptures planned for downtown intersections is installed in front of Los Altos Typewriter & Business Machines.
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'Danseuse' Leaps Onto State Street
Jeff Owen helps a city worker install the sculpture he is loaning to the city of Los Altos, one of seven that were selected by the Public Sculpture Committee last month.
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Like a lot of people around Silicon Valley, Jeff Owen used to be an IT guy.
Then one day, after moving from the country to the city, his father-in-law gave him his dusty old welding equipment.
"I just started to play with it," Owen recalled, along with picking up a few burns. It was fun, and a creative outlet.
That was a dozen years ago, and sculpture became a first a side interest, then bigger and bigger, as he entered arts festivals with his work. Finally, it took over.
He left his job in IT services at Stanfords Medical Center's cardiovascular medicine last year. In November 2010 he was invited to be on a reality show in Las Vegas, "Desperate Landscapes." His sculpture, "Ballet," now graces the yard of a couple who are acrobats at Circus Circus (ah, only in Vegas, can we find these stories).
He met Los Altos Public Sculpture Committee chairwoman Suzanne Moshier at one of those arts and wine festivals, and entered his sculpture for consideration.
On Tuesday, Owen's distinctive red, arcing piece, "Danseuse" is now up at State Street and Second Street, in front of Los Altos Typewriter and Business Machines. It's one of seven that will be installed in intersections around the downtown, all on loan from the artists.
What do you think of the new sculpture?
Tell us in the comments.
