Alexis Smith’s ‘Snake Path’ - San Diego, CA
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N 32° 52.860 W 117° 14.227
11S E 477819 N 3638119
This 1992 mosaic sculpture is located near the Geisel Library on the campus of UCSD (University of California at San Diego).
The work depicts a 560-foot long snake using differently colored slate.
Waymark Code: WMJCTD
Location: California, United States
Date Posted: 10/31/2013
Views: 5
On January 20, 2012, The San Diego Union Tribune ran the following story:
"Alexis Smith’s ‘Snake Path’
Biblical serpent winds through the garden on its way to UCSD’s Geisel Library
By Ann Jarmusch • Special to the U-T 4:33 p.m.Jan. 20, 2012
“Snake Path”
By: Alexis Smith; constructed by Klaser Tile Co. •
Date: 1992
Materials: Slate tiles, granite, marble, fruit trees •
Size: 560 feet long by 10 feet wide
Location: Stuart Collection, outside University of California San Diego Geisel Library, La Jolla
Los Angeles-based artist Alexis Smith took the biblical story about the serpent in the Garden of Eden and transported it to the University of California San Diego campus. Loosely following a footpath outside Geisel Library, the internationally known artist created a 560-foot-long, 10-foot-wide tile snake with a rounded back. Its alert head and flicking tongue point to the library entrance.
The sloped, serpentine path encircles a small garden planted with an apple and other fruit trees, which shelter a marble bench with an engraved quotation claiming ignorance is bliss. But the thousands of Adams and Eves who tread upon this unique “Snake Path” or pause at the garden bench know better.
On their way out of the library, an outsize, granite replica of Milton’s “Paradise Lost” comes into view. It bears a quotation from the book that praises the pursuit of knowledge: “And wilt thou not be loath to leave this Paradise, but shalt possess a Paradise within thee, happier far.”
The award-winning “Snake Path” appeals to all ages, said Mary L. Beebe, director of UCSD’s Stuart Collection of site-specific sculpture. Even in this age of instant tweets, classical wisdom endures to inspire each new wave of seekers and students.
Ann Jarmusch, formerly the U-T’s architecture critic, writes about art, architecture and historic preservation."
Type of publication: Newspaper
When was the article reported?: 01/20/2012
Publication: San Diego Union Tribune
Article Url: [Web Link]
Is Registration Required?: no
How widespread was the article reported?: local
News Category: Arts/Culture
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