June 16th, 2007 marked the opening dedication of both Dan Das Mann and Karen Cusolito’s sculpture, Passage, and the newly renovated breakwater which is now a public access pier.
Passage by Dan DasMann and Karen Cusolito
Pier 14 on the San Francisco Embarcadero, California
June 16, 2006 – November 2007
Reclaimed steel 30’H x 20’W x 9’D
Passage at Pier 14 in San Francisco, California.
About the Project
Passage, originally installed at Burning Man 2005, expresses the moment in which legacy is passed on from one generation to the next. The artists frequently work with themes of hope for the future, environmental concerns and humanitarian ideals in their works.
Event Founder, Larry Harvey, asked artist, Dan Das Mann, why the mother and child sculptures were pointed toward the open playa, decidedly away from ‘the Man’, the effigy which is the namesake of the event. Dan replied that the sculptures were leaving Black Rock City, heading out to live their lives in the great big world beyond.
The Opening Reception celebration for Passage
About the Site
In 2006, BRAF ambitiously sought the permission of the San Francisco Port Authority to install Dan Das Mann and Karen Cusolito’s large-scale mother-and-child sculpture, Passage, on Pier 14 on the Embarcadero waterfront. BRAF won their support, the piece was installed and quickly became an attraction and beloved, if temporary, landmark for the community.
Upon the work’s deinstallation, local businesses and residents demanded new, equally compelling and high caliber works of art. The San Francisco Port Commission, citing their positive experience with BRAF and the public reaction to the artwork, approved the temporary installation of Spider by esteemed artist Louise Bourgeois. After the deinstallation of Bourgeois’ work, BRAF installed the stunning and iconic Raygun Gothic Rocketship, by Sean Orlando, Nathaniel Taylor, David Shulman, Alan Rorie and their talented crew.
An initiative to establish Pier 14 as an ongoing site for temporary exhibits received blanket approval from the Bay Conservation and Development Commission (BCDC). The site will continue to be reserved for rotating exhibits of large-scale sculptures until at least 2012.
