Takera Narita
From A
1986
Presentation of the artwork
The artwork, situated in Parc René-Lévesque, seems to emerge from and sink back into the ground. It is composed of three sections of a fluted column describing an arc at ground level and linked together by fragments of polished black stone.Narita proposes a column diverted from its function as vertical support. By making it curve, he inscribes this architectural element in a completely different register. The circle suggests the cycle of history. The title, From A, refers to an idea of a path, as if one could find it in a mathematical formula describing a path between two points. Because A is also the first letter of the alphabet, one may also see it as a reference to that system of signs through which written communication is formed. In this context, the use of the column seems to commemorate the decisive influence of ancient Greek civilization, which laid the foundations for the architectural heritage. However, the fragmented state of the column, almost in a state of ruin, invites viewers to reflect on this heritage and on the notion of the cycle.
Associated events
From A was produced for the second Lachine sculpture symposium, “L’an II – Lachine, carrefour de l’art et de l’industrie,” organized on the shores of the Lachine Canal in the summer of 1986. 
Crédit photo: Guy L'Heureux, 2014
Takera Narita
Takera Narita was born Japan and he studied at the Musashito school of fine art in Japan and the École des beaux-arts in Paris, France. He participated in a number of sculpture symposiums in Europe, including the first international gathering for granite sculpture organized by the Centre d’art contemporain de Vassivière-en-Limousin, in France, in 1983. His works were presented twice, in 1980 and 1981, at the Salon de la jeune sculpture de Paris. He died in Paris in 2001.
Presentation of the artwork
The artwork, situated in Parc René-Lévesque, seems to emerge from and sink back into the ground. It is composed of three sections of a fluted column describing an arc at ground level and linked together by fragments of polished black stone.Narita proposes a column diverted from its function as vertical support. By making it curve, he inscribes this architectural element in a completely different register. The circle suggests the cycle of history. The title, From A, refers to an idea of a path, as if one could find it in a mathematical formula describing a path between two points. Because A is also the first letter of the alphabet, one may also see it as a reference to that system of signs through which written communication is formed. In this context, the use of the column seems to commemorate the decisive influence of ancient Greek civilization, which laid the foundations for the architectural heritage. However, the fragmented state of the column, almost in a state of ruin, invites viewers to reflect on this heritage and on the notion of the cycle.
Associated events
From A was produced for the second Lachine sculpture symposium, “L’an II – Lachine, carrefour de l’art et de l’industrie,” organized on the shores of the Lachine Canal in the summer of 1986.
Takera Narita
Takera Narita was born Japan and he studied at the Musashito school of fine art in Japan and the École des beaux-arts in Paris, France. He participated in a number of sculpture symposiums in Europe, including the first international gathering for granite sculpture organized by the Centre d’art contemporain de Vassivière-en-Limousin, in France, in 1983. His works were presented twice, in 1980 and 1981, at the Salon de la jeune sculpture de Paris. He died in Paris in 2001.
