STOYAN BARAKOV

Recollection 

Runner-up

First Capital Realty Inc. and OCAD University 

2018/2019  Public Sculpture Competition 

“Recollection” is an immersive and site-specific installation, based drawing on nostalgia and memory, as well as future projection. It is situated between the 5 planters Victoria Park Avenue and Ellesmere Road and stands 8 ft high to allow pedestrian and patron access through the plaza and clear visibility of Parkway Plaza’s wayfinding.

The piece draws inspiration from the historical design and urban plan of the site, and what used to be there. The circular geometry pays homage to the now-demolished Carousel Records store and references the futurist ideals of the bygone modern era. Like the iconic wooden arches of Parkway Mall, “Recollection” is a ghost of the past. Its skeletal form remarks on the passing of time, while its materiality is anchored firmly in a contemporary style to suit today’s development. It can be perceived as a monument that captures the essence of and reincarnates, what used to be.

From a distance, the viewers see a uniform edge of the structure that speaks to the construction of Grand Union supermarkets (present-day Metro). Upon approach, the composition of the upper layer is revealed as a playful assemblage of welded 6” metal tubes, positioned in a circle around an oculus. The slightly askew horizontal top will be mounted on flat metal planes that spring out of the plaza, contrasting the cylindrical tubes and the circular top. The intention is for the circular structure to appear virtually weightless. Overall, the materiality comments on the nowadays contemporary industrial aesthetic juxtaposed to the original architectural integrity of the surrounding buildings.

The materiality takes the piece to a place beyond homage. The hollow tubes resonate with natural elements such as wind and rain, producing low-volume tones that are at the same time melodic and haunting.  and other environmental activities. The atmospheric sound effect can be heard as one is near the installation; an echo that enhances the visitors' experience of nostalgia and memory.  

“Recollection” commemorates the past, not as what it was, but what it is for us today. Using contemporary materials, evocative geometry, and environmental interactions, it becomes a contemporary commemoration of the past and a suggestion to our changing future.