Wishbone House by Colin Greenly

Wishbone House, an inexpensive, reproducible, six foot high, eight foot long, ten thousand pound concrete sculpture logically fell, or grew outside of the general tenor of my sculpture since it was specifically designed for playground use by children and was made during the period when I was producing the large glass constructions.

As noted in the "Art In America" November-December 1967 issue the visual and philosophic concerns of the glass sculpture were replaced with other considerations: site - playground, sculptural integrity, appropriate scale, tactile response, climb on, climb in, sit on, shade incorporation, and creating a non-limiting "platform" for childrens' imagination. The essential ingredient with which I started was an intuitive, varied, playful "S" curve which was repeated with spacing related to the likely movements of children. I was most pleased when my artist friend Jose Bermudez and his son Alexander visited the studio just when an initial full scale section was completed. Alex and the sculpture seemed to fit each other exactly.

The piece was chosen, by the joint Art in America and Corcoran jury, as the winner in The Corcoran Gallery's School of Art's National Playground Sculpture Competition which was partially funded by The National Endowment for the Arts.

Footnote: The prize included installation of one cast in Washington, D.C. When I learned that the cast was to be installed in a wealthy section of Washington, I called the White House to note my degree of unhappiness with that choice. First lady, Mrs. Johnson, who did much to enliven the District's environment, kindly arranged for a second cast to be placed in a less fortunate part of the city. I'll always be greatful for her sensivity.

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