At the Ford’s Theatre Center for Education and Leadership—across the street from the infamous spot where Abraham Lincoln was shot—a 34-foot-tall tower of books commands its own stage. The installation, a testament to how much has been written about the sixteenth president, comprises some 6,800 book sculptures crafted of fireproof bent aluminum; cover images are printed onto each one. The books represent actual titles written about (or by) Abraham Lincoln, including histories, biographies, speeches and collections of quotations.
The tower sculpture is viewed up close via a spiral staircase that winds around it and takes visitors to each floor of the four-story museum. Minneapolis-based Split Rock Studios, which conceived the monumental sculpture in 2011 for the Ford’s Theatre Society, had to be cognizant of weight- and load-bearing issues in its design and construction. Though it has not been updated since its 2012 debut, the work nevertheless remains a tribute to Lincoln’s lasting legacy. 511 10th Street, NW; fords.org
Installation Design: Split Rock Studios, Minneapolis, Minnesota.
