The Watching Tower

This piece is the third in my series of Lego towers. The name “Watching Tower” refers to my name, Ira, which in Hebrew translates to watchful. Throughout my life, I’ve always thought of myself as a perceptive person, always keeping an eye on every possible angle around me. I’ve started to realize that I need to. Ideally I wouldn’t miss a single detail. It provides me great comfort to be watching. The tower is a reflection of that, covered in eyes, (among other details) returning the stare of a viewer. 

The walls of the tower are filled with windows, structure, details, mechanisms, and of course, eyes and faces. I create things that would reward someone who watches like I do. There is always more to absorb. Minutiae will remain hidden. My intent was to get the viewer lost in this piece, their attention slowly exploring a maze of features. 

In detailing the walls of the tower, I attempted to make something that was childlike and whimsical. I am almost always watching the world through a lens of awe. I love to focus on tiny vignettes, from lines in architecture to the nature that surrounds me. This sculpture is an amalgamation of every interesting thing I’ve observed, all forced onto one structure, competing for space and attention. 

Like other sculptures in this series, this one is constrained by the selection of a single color. The tower is fully constructed of yellow lego bricks. This is a medium that I’ve practiced since I was a child, not quite as long as I’ve observed the world around me, but almost. Both are meditative practices. I aim to draw the viewer into that serenity for a moment. The tower stands calmly, silently watching the world, just as I often find myself.