VENTURA : Fountain on Pier to Harness Waves

A San Francisco artist has been commissioned by the city of Ventura to create a copper water fountain for its pier as part of a $3.5-million restoration project, officials said Friday.

The six-foot-tall fountain, to be installed near the end of the Ventura Pier, will use wave energy to spray a stream of seawater into the air.

“It’s really a controlled, small-scale blowhole,” said kinetic artist Ned Kahn, creator of the $80,000 fountain.

Officials called the commissioning of the project an example of their commitment to enhancing cultural assets in Ventura.

“We want to help raise the city by its cultural bootstraps,” said Mayor Richard Francis of the city’s stand on publicly funded art.

The work will be located about 60 feet from the end of the 1,958-foot pier, centered over a slot in the deck. Two pipes will extend from a turbine-shaped fountainhead into the water. As waves roll past, water will pressurize the air in the pipes, blowing a small amount of water from the fountain.

Like most of his work, Kahn’s fountain will be an attempt to capture “the mysteriousness of natural forces.”

“Much of my work incorporates moving water, wind, sand, mist and sunlight,” said Kahn, who says he has created indoor illusions of weather nationwide. At a building in New Jersey, Kahn is constructing a seven-story glass work that uses water to simulate the action of a tornado. However, the $250,000 project has stalled because of the recession, Kahn said.

At his Ventura Pier project, which will be completed with other renovations in late 1992, special care must be taken in the design and materials to ensure that the fountain will withstand the ocean’s pounding.

“The waves can be frightening, especially in winter,” Kahn said of the pier area.

The pier will undergo a major structural renovation beginning in early 1992, officials said. New lighting, fish-cleaning stations and a rebuilt restaurant will all be part of the finished project.

Kahn said the inspiration for the shape of the copper fountain came from turn-of-the-century hydraulic turbines used to create electric power. The metal will develop a rich patina of blue, green and metallic hues over time, adding to the historic feel of the art, he said.