The Boulder artist behind the “Endurance” sculpture at the Florida Road roundabout in Durango – which was damaged by two car crashes within two months – said though he is saddened by the damage, he isn’t concerned it will become a pattern.
The art piece, created by Josh Wiener and unveiled in 2012, originally featured five steel cyclists constructed from 12,000 individual steel parts and 28,000 welds. Three of the steel riders were taken out by an alleged impaired driver in March, and another was destroyed Saturday by a 90-year-old driver who hit a curb and lost control of his vehicle, according to authorities.
“I think it's a freak thing,” Wiener said in an interview. “I mean, it's been up for 11 years, and they were never hit before.”
In what seems an almost serendipitous turn of events, the single lone rider left after the two crashes is the cyclist modeled after Wiener’s brother, Adam, who died from amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. The brothers were close and lived together in Durango for nine years, Wiener said. The other riders were meant to be more generic, and were modeled after amalgamations of several cyclists, he said.
“He’s gone, but his spirit’s here,” Wiener said about the lone standing sculpture. “I built it when he was still here. It’s almost like it elevates his meaning in that composition. ... To honor him and have him be the one (still) out there – it really brings a smile to my face.”
Wiener said “Endurance” is one of his most beloved large-scale art pieces.
“That one really is a standout with the way people adopted it and put holiday hats on it,” he said. “... It’s owned by Durango, and that means a lot to me. That really makes me feel like I did the right thing at the right time with the right imagery. You know, it’s got this synergy.”
Wiener said he’s received many messages from friends who are in disbelief that the art piece was mangled twice in such a short period of time by drivers who failed to navigate the roundabout.
“I’ve had friends that have reached out and are writing, ‘WTF,’” he said. “Everybody’s baffled that not only did it get hit once, but it got hit twice.”
Wiener said he isn’t concerned about crashes at the roundabout becoming a regular occurrence, but he would be willing to work with the city to implement additional structural guardrails for the art piece.
The sculpture initially took roughly three months to complete, he said. With the help of the city of Durango and insurance payments, Wiener has been working on mending the first three damaged cyclists since March, and will be picking up the pieces of the other damaged rider on Wednesday.
Wiener said he anticipates the sculptures will be fixed and put back on display in the roundabout by mid-June.
Adam’s sculpture will remain as the lone rider in the roundabout while the other pieces are being mended, he said.
epond@durangoherald.com
