Jimenez Deredia sculpture in Italian city

A monumental white marble sculpture by the artist from Costa Rica, Jorge Jimenez Deredia has been erected since Saturday in a traffic circle which connects the cities of Viareggio and Pietrasanta, in the province of Lucca, Italy.

Since that day, the traffic circle has the same name as the sculpture “Continuación (Continuation),” which measures 2.60 meters high, 2.20 wide and 2.20 in length and weighs 15 tons.

The placement at a strategic point of the city is part of an urban beautification project and cultural promotion developed by the City of Pietrasanta.

This city is a center of great artistic effervescence in which renowned sculptors from around the world converge.

“I feel very privileged to have been one of the 15 sculptors selected to perform a monumental work to be displayed permanently at this great outdoor museum,” said Deredia Jimenez, who lives in Carrara, Italy.

So far, six of the 15 sculptures of the project have been placed in traffic circles, squares and highly trafficked public spaces.

Sculptors with the stature of the Colombian Fernando Botero, the Belgian Jean Michel Folon, the Japanese Kan Yasuda and also the Polish Igor Mitoraj are part of this initiative.

The sculpture “Continuation” follows the line of humanist thinking that all of the works by Deredia Jimenez, who was born in Heredia, Costa Rica 53 years ago maintain.

The sculpture shows a figure holding a sphere and raises it to the sky. “The sphere is a universal symbol of human beings in order to represent that continuation that we must have with ourselves and with the deep past of our country,” said the artist.

The piece is placed in a cement base which in turn is surrounded by a water mirror.

To be able to mobilize and assemble the gigantic piece of art, carved in Carrara marble, it was necessary to use a 100 ton crane. There are gardens around it that invite the public to relax and appreciate art.

“My works pose a reflection on the human aspect which has now lost importance to give priority to materialism. It is a call not to forget the spiritual needs that we have as human beings,” said the artist.

Currently, the sculptor is getting ready for the presentation of an ambitious show in Rome, to be inaugurated in June 2009.

TicosLand.com congratulates Deredia Jimenez. Having been included in this project means continued recognition of this Costa Rican artist’s great works of art, as did Pope John Paul II, who included one of his sculptures for St Peter's Basilica, Deredia being the first non-European sculptor to have a work of art placed there. Being part of a project such as this, along with his world-class sculptures, place him among the greats.