Located at Shafer Hall

The center piece for a patio garden just outside the southwest corner of Shafer Hall is Water Strider Fountain, composed of natural- and man-made materials; Phillips combined stone and plants with the cast bronze sculpture. The sculptural form represents a Water Strider insect that takes advantage of surface tension to sit atop the water. Here, water flows over the sculpture, the Water Strider where it pools in four bronze plate bowls creating a feeling of aquatic suspension.

The site committee for this project charged the artist with integrating granite steps that had been part of the historic Nobel Hall/School building across the street into the design of the art. Phillips uses them as the retaining walls of the fountain and they provide an important reference to the site’s history. Other recycled material used in this project includes the green slate from the site which were cut and combined with brick to create the geometric pattern of the patio surface.

David Phillips’ philosophy of public art: “The integration of sculpture with public space involves complex relationships; conceptual, physical, experiential. These include natural events, light, sound, people, density, history, and current and projected use."