Large White Statue Invites People to Stop and Listen

A large statue of a woman's head with her finger pressing on her lips now faces lower Manhattan, in New York City, inviting¹ the busy area to stop and listen.

The message of Barcelona-based artist Jaume Plensa's work is "to keep silent, ... to listen to the profound² noise of the water talking to us," he said recently.

He added, "The water, when it moves, makes a special sound, very special."

The statue, 24-meters tall, is Plensa's biggest work to date. It is called "Water's Soul."

The statue's white head sits in front of tall buildings in Jersey³ City's Newport waterfront in New Jersey, facing the Hudson River. It stands directly across from Greenwich Village and about six kilometers from the Statue of Liberty⁴.

On a recent morning, Plensa saw the piece fully⁵ put together for the first time. Its call for silence competed with engine sounds and the cries and laughter of children.

But those are not the kind of noises that Plensa says his artwork is targeting.

"I'm talking about the noise of information and messages to us," he said at New York's Galerie Lelong Co, where a public showing of new work will open on October 29.

Plensa, 66, was hired to create the piece about two years ago by LaFrak and Simon Property Group. The group has developed the area, including the place where "Water's Soul" stands.

The statue shows a real-life person whose image was scanned⁷. The piece was made from various materials at Plensa's Barcelona studio. It was shipped in 23 containers, each 12 meters long, to Jersey City to be put together.

The sculpture is visible⁸ from far and wide. Some local people have watched the piece being put together since August. They wonder why the statue seems to tell people to be quiet, an act known as shushing.

"Why is she shushing?" asked Cleveland Rice, age 63.

"I'm sure there's got to be some kind of meaning behind it," said William Schoentube, age 53.

Huan Yan, age 31, said, "I'd say it's telling New York City to keep this area a secret because we don't want to drive more people to work here."

Miriam, age 46, who did not give her last name, has a direct view of the statue from her apartment window. She does not like it.

"I don't find it fitting⁹ in the entire environment," she said.

Plensa has been showing his work around the world for more than 40 years. He said it can take time for his art to become accepted into different environments.

"In the public space, the piece is the piece, and it's competing with so many other objects," he said.

Plensa said the sculpture is not sending a message to Manhattan, and she is not "shushing," but silently calling for quiet.

"In many of my pieces I'm asking the viewer: Close your eyes and look inside yourself, because you have an amazing quantity of beauty hidden inside," he said.

"Water's Soul" can best be viewed from the river, he added.

Like many of Plensa's works¹⁰, including several new pieces at the Galerie Lelong show, "Water's Soul" is the head of a woman with closed eyes.

His pieces mostly show women, he says, because he sees life and the world as female¹¹, while "boys are just an accident - a very nice accident, but an accident."

Words in This Story

lip – n. either one of the two soft parts that surround the mouth

profound – adj. having or showing great knowledge or understanding; requiring deep thought or wisdom

scan⁶ – v. to use a special machine to read or copy (something, such as a photograph or a page of text) into a computer

amazing – adj. filling (someone) with wonder

1 inviting   

adj.诱人的，引人注目的

参考例句：

• An inviting smell of coffee wafted into the room.一股诱人的咖啡香味飘进了房间。
• The kitchen smelled warm and inviting and blessedly familiar.这间厨房的味道温暖诱人，使人感到亲切温馨。

2 profound   

adj.深奥的，造诣深的；深度的，极度的

参考例句：

• I give you my profound thanks for saving my life.我对您的救命之恩深表谢意。
• He has a profound knowledge of mathematics.他数学知识渊博。

3 jersey   

n.运动衫

参考例句：

• He wears a cotton jersey when he plays football.他穿运动衫踢足球。
• They were dressed alike in blue jersey and knickers.他们穿着一致，都是蓝色的运动衫和灯笼短裤。

4 liberty   

n.自由，自由权；冒昧行为

参考例句：

• He stood for the cause of liberty and justice.他为自由和正义的事业而奋斗。
• You are at liberty to do as you please.你可以随意行事。

5 fully   

adv.完全地，全部地，彻底地；充分地

参考例句：

• The doctor asked me to breathe in,then to breathe out fully.医生让我先吸气，然后全部呼出。
• They soon became fully integrated into the local community.他们很快就完全融入了当地人的圈子。

6 scan   

n.审视，浏览，扫描，押韵，细查；vt.细看，浏览，扫描，详细调查，信件扫描（指BBS处理直递邮件或会议邮件时，对所有或特定信区做检查的动作）

参考例句：

• The first scan was bad, so I had to do it again.第一次扫描不好，所以我得重做。
• A scan determines the position of the baby in the womb.扫描可以确定胎儿在子宮中的位置。

7 scanned   

经（擦伤仪）仔细检查的

参考例句：

• He scanned the horizon for any sign of land. 他仔细眺望地平线，找寻陆地的踪影。
• She scanned his face to see if he was telling the truth. 她审视着他的脸，看他讲的是否是真话。

8 visible   

adj.看得见的，明显的，显然的；n.可见物

参考例句：

• It is a visible star in the sky.这是一颗在天空中可见的星星。
• The warning lights were clearly visible.警示信号灯清晰可见。

9 fitting   

n.[pl.]设备，家具，配件，试穿；adj.适合的

参考例句：

• I'm going to a fitting tomorrow.明天我要去试穿新衣。
• The President's address was a fitting end to a bitter campaign.总统的讲话为一场激烈的竞选运动适时画上了句号。

10 works   

n.作品，著作；工厂，活动部件，机件

参考例句：

• We expect writers to produce more and better works.我们期望作家们写出更多更好的作品。
• The novel is regarded as one of the classic works.这篇小说被公认为是最优秀的作品之一。

11 female   

adj.雌的，女(性)的；n.雌性的动物，女子

参考例句：

• We only employ female workers.我们只雇用女工。
• The animal in the picture was a female elephant.照片上的动物是头母象。