Pier Plaza Art to Show City History

When Pier Plaza opens next year, the city will have not only a new amphitheater, more beach parking and an open area that offers views of the ocean, beach and pier, it also will have an art display incorporated into the project’s design and construction.

Community Services Director Ron Hagan said that “art in public places” will be an integral part of the $5-million project next to the city pier.

Though the artistic touch will add $300,000 to the cost of the project, Hagan said, “when you see what the pieces are and how it enhances the beautification of the plaza, you’ll see why it’s included.”

Special materials such as red stone and granite pillars will be used for the amphitheater, Hagan said, and a ceramic mural will be a centerpiece of the plaza area.

The mural, 37 feet long and 8 feet high, will depict the history and culture of Huntington Beach, including influences from the past and present, said Ann Thorne, public art consultant for the project.

For example, the mural will portray a poet from the 1920s writing at the former Golden Bear Cafe and a sunbathing woman in a 1950s setting, she said.

Another feature will be a “beach swag” designed to make an “entry statement to the plaza and pier,” she said. “People will walk under it and through it to enter the plaza and go onto the pier.”

The swag, made of anodized aluminum, will depict phases of the city’s development, such as the oil boom years, the surf culture and the beet sugar industry, she said.

Artists Lloyd Hamrol, Sheila Klein and Terry Schoonhoven have been selected to create the Pier Plaza artwork.

The City Council will review the art proposal at a 5 p.m. study session today.