A sculpture that resembles a human nose, complete with hairy nostrils, mysteriously appeared this weekend at Hart Crane Park, the small greenspace adjacent to Sainato's and Merwin's Wharf in the Flats.
Canalway Partners, the local nonprofit chiefly responsible for the Towpath Trail and restoration efforts on the northern end of the Ohio & Erie Canalway National Heritage Area, is trying to find out who exactly put it there and why. They got the word out Tuesday on social media.
Hey Cleveland Twitter: this fine piece of art showed up at Hart Crane Park recently and we'd like to make sure it didn't wander from its home. Got any ideas?#CuyahogaRiver pic.twitter.com/De5aTZb4EP
— Canalway Partners (@canalwaycle) March 2, 2021
Mera Cardenas, Canalway Partners' Executive Director, told Scene by email that she and her staff have tried to ID the piece and have asked around, but no leads have yet emerged.
"I don’t know what it is," she wrote. "Could be a sculpture in itself or part of a larger one? Guerrilla art or a high school prank? It really is a mystery!"
Cardenas said she wasn't sure what the intentions of the person or persons who left it were — was this even art? — but it certainly has provoked a reaction and kept the staff amused for a few days.
An RTA crew is doing bridge work Wednesday morning in that area, and the sculpture will be moved to make way for them, Cardenas said. She is eager for the piece to be restored to its rightful home, if indeed it's gone missing.
Meanwhile, some early clues have emerged this morning:
— Michelle Jarboe (@mjarboe) March 3, 2021
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