Ever since Sculpture Milwaukee installed artist Carlos Rolón's "Gild The Lily (Caribbean Hybrid, I, II, III)" in the Chase Tower, 111 E. Wisconsin Ave., in spring 2019, it's brought a burst of color to the glass box lobby.
Recently, the building's Michigan owners, the Farbman Group, announced that the installation will remain for yet another year.
A number of artworks brought to the city by Sculpture Milwaukee have remained on view beyond the closing of the season-long exhibition or been purchased for permanent installation in Milwaukee, including Robert Indiana's famous "LOVE" sculpture and Radcliffe Bailey's "Pensive."
"Carlos Rolón’s installation in the Chase Tower has become a staple of the architectural aesthetic of the building, so much so that we couldn’t imagine Chase Tower without it anytime soon," said Farbman Group CEO Andrew V. Farbman.
"Thanks to Rolón’s creative prowess and Sculpture Milwaukee’s partnership, the building is a standout in the Downtown Milwaukee business district and admired by the hundreds of people who work within the building every day."
For the installation, which is a reproduction of Rolón’s original triptych painting, the artist wrapped the exterior of the glass lobby with a translucent array of tropical flowers, creating a burst of color at a high-visibility intersection at the heart of Downtown Milwaukee.
“As an artist, it’s extremely rewarding for people to identify a building known for its modernist importance with a body of work you have personally created,” said Rolón.
“I couldn’t be happier that Farbman Group decided to extend my installation, and thus, invested in keeping this visual piece on display for passersby to enjoy for another year.”
Born in Brooklyn, N.Y., where he lived until he was 17, Bobby received his BA-Mass Communications from UWM in 1989 and has lived in Walker's Point, Bay View, Enderis Park, South Milwaukee and on the East Side.
He has published three non-fiction books in Italy – including one about an event in Milwaukee history, which was published in the U.S. in autumn 2010. Four more books, all about Milwaukee, have been published by The History Press.
With his most recent band, The Yell Leaders, Bobby released four LPs and had a songs featured in episodes of TV's "Party of Five" and "Dawson's Creek," and films in Japan, South America and the U.S. The Yell Leaders were named the best unsigned band in their region by VH-1 as part of its Rock Across America 1998 Tour. Most recently, the band contributed tracks to a UK vinyl/CD tribute to the Redskins and collaborated on a track with Italian novelist Enrico Remmert.
He's produced three installments of the "OMCD" series of local music compilations for OnMilwaukee.com and in 2007 produced a CD of Italian music and poetry.
In 2005, he was awarded the City of Asti's (Italy) Journalism Prize for his work focusing on that area. He has also won awards from the Milwaukee Press Club.
He has be heard on 88Nine Radio Milwaukee talking about his "Urban Spelunking" series of stories, in that station's most popular podcast.
