See Woody De Othello’s Towering Totems At Brooklyn Bridge Park

Known for colorful ceramics that transform everyday objects—phones, combs, clocks—into psychological explorations, for his largest works to date, 35-year-old sculptor Woody De Othello turned instead to redwood to craft his three towering totems in “Guardian Spirit,” which will stand sentry at New York’s Brooklyn Bridge Park for the next 10 months. A material experiment more akin to furniture-making, Othello chose the wood, which he hand-carved in his Oakland, California, studio using chainsaws and grinders, because the waterfront site demanded a substance capable of withstanding wind and water; although it has been stained and sealed, time will tell if the redwood will weather and change appearance. Such uncertainty and consideration speak to the personal journey of Othello, who was born in Miami to Haitian parents, an experience that left him feeling culturally between two worlds, pushing him to research precolonial Africa and diasporic traditions, particularly nkisi, items that heal and protect. Those manifest here in relief details like hands, ears, birds, and kneeling figures, merging ornament with storytelling, “pointing to the shared consciousness we’re all part of,” Othello notes. His next commission, a permanent one, continues that shared connection:A suite of his sculptures will be installed atop luggage carousels at John F. Kennedy International Airport’s New Terminal One, designed by Gensler and currently under construction.