A monument to friendship

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A monument to friendship

Hoover friendship pole on pace for end of school completion.

 

 

By JUDY SECKLER

 

Students under the direction of Pierre Odier, Hoover High department chairman of the visual and performing arts, are getter closer to the completion of their friendship pole sculpture. When finished at the end of the school year, it will stand 20 feet tall. The project began five years ago at the suggestion of the Native American Awareness team, a school club. The group came up with the concept to create a lasting homage to the multitude of cultures at the school. Last year, Odier got word from the administration that the 40-foot bronze sculpture would have to be built at half size. With the sculpture's plates already designed and cast, the challenge has been to redesign the sculpture keeping the spirit and the intent of the original piece intact. The design has been an interdisciplinary learning experience, Odier said. The design includes the 3,500 signatures of students, faculty and administration. Parts of it include stones from Armenia, China, Korea, Mexico, El Salvador, Canada and all 50 states. Another part of the design includes the visualization of the Tongva tribe's Native American oral history. The complete project will be in the lower quad at Hoover High School.