Dog park’s dog sculpture in Rancho Cucamonga has critics sniffing – Daily Bulletin

The Bark at Central Park is the new, cleverly named and very popular dog park in Rancho Cucamonga, where dogs can run free inside fenced play areas. And outside the fence, as if standing guard, another dog faces traffic alertly.

That’s “On Point,” a large sculpture of a canine companion, painted bright yellow.

This dog is very recognizably a dog, fashioned from 1/8-inch steel, but is slightly abstracted, made up of planes and angles. Artist Seth Johnson told me he didn’t want his sculpture to be too representational of any particular breed.

With that out of the way, he said: “It’s kind of a mix between a Doberman and a Husky, the bigger dogs.”

The bigger dogs, ha ha. “On Point” is the biggest dog of them all at 12 feet tall and 2,000 pounds, literally one ton.

The primary color is meant to make the dog seem even less representational.

“I named it Old Yeller as I was putting it together,” Johnson confided. “One of my first pets was a dog, and she was a yellow Lab mix.”

The yellow has some people seeing red.

On the Rancho Cucamonga News Group page on Facebook, posts about the sculpture have dozens of comments, many of them negative.

“I’m curious about whose ‘bright’ idea this was,” sniffed Theresa Pfeiffer.

“On Point” was called “hideous” (Linda Papac), “this monstrosity” (Jay McNair), “an eyesore” (Sharon Hunt) and “like something from ‘The Hunger Games’” (Jan Hayden Jin). Also, “unbelievably horrible” (Lynn Rasch), as if it were a wartime atrocity or skin disease.

Rasch added: “I’d really like to know whose idea that was and if they were drinking when the rest of them approved it.”

Asked a curious Gerald Wayne: “When will they be installing the giant fire hydrant next to it?”

Some considered the public art (and even the park itself) as government waste and nicknamed the dog “Brandon” or “Gavin.” I’m not sure what that has to do with anything, but OK.

I went to the dog park, which is on Base Line Road and Spruce Avenue, to see “On Point” for myself. Personally, I like it. It’s cheerful — unlike the haters. And to place it outside a dog park is a rare example of municipal whimsy.

It’s not avant-garde. But then, this is Rancho Cucamonga. “On Point” might go over better if it were a sculpture of three dogs playing poker.

Question: Can you sculpt figures out of black velvet?

Inside the dog park, I surveyed humans. Their opinions were a mixed breed.

“I don’t have a problem with it,” John Cox said. “I see people online who have a problem with it, but I’m not sure what the problem is.” He wondered if the critics even own dogs.

“It doesn’t have to be yellow,” Tina Mazzotta said. “They could make it the color of a normal dog.”

What color is a normal dog? Mazzotta thought a moment and replied: “Three-toned.”

Sam Hernandez likes the sculpture but said it should be “bronze, old school, with rivets,” calling his preferred version “gladiator-like.”

“Is this about the statue people talk about on the internet?” Kristi Gavin asked, joining our conversation. “I have to laugh about how many people are complaining.”

She added: “When my dog sees that yellow dog, he knows we’re going to the park.”

“I think for this area it’s modern art,” Daniella Finkle said dubiously. “Maybe in Los Angeles or Hollywood it would be great. Here … it’s yellow.”

Carrie Baird, who was at the park with her beagle, Molly, had pointed remarks about “On Point.”

“It’s an eyesore for our city. I don’t care for it at all,” Baird declared. “I’ve been in this city 40 years. That’s the ugliest thing I’ve ever seen. I want to know who approved this thing.”

If Donna Wilkes knew who approved this thing, she might thank them.

“I think it’s unique. That could be anybody’s dog,” said Wilkes, who’d brought her wire terrier, Lizzy. “They’re not going to take it down, are they? We’ll have to make signs to protest, won’t we, Lizzy?”

Mariana Slagter said she learned of the dog park’s existence from spotting the sculpture, which she thinks is “fun” and “cool.” Others agreed that the art is a visual cue that lets them know when to make the turn.

The sculpture cost $20,000. Taxpayers didn’t pay a penny. The money came from the city’s public art fund, to which developers must contribute as part of the fees they pay to build. Instead of “Gavin” or “Brandon,” we might name it “Lewis.”

The 4.4-acre park with three fenced enclosures is a hit, by the way.

“You can go there at any time of the day and the park is very well utilized,” Mike Parmer, the assistant to the city manager, told me. “We’re fielding a lot of compliments.”

No formal dedication for the sculpture is planned, but a plaque with its name and Johnson’s name is coming, Parmer promised. The city plans a community engagement effort to nickname the dog. “The public came up with The Bark at Central Park,” Parmer added.

The dog sculpture’s story — its pedigree, if you will — is a bit wild.

Johnson, a landscape architect in Nevada who makes art on the side, created the work for this year’s Burning Man festival, where his work was placed in a key location, Center Camp. From Burning Man to Rancho Cucamonga. That’s amazing.

Post-Burning Man, Johnson is delighted that his statue is out in the community rather than in someone’s back yard.

“I love the idea that it’s at a dog park,” Johnson said.

He’s aware of the criticism, without having followed it, and accepts it as part of the job. With public art, “you’re going to get naysayers,” he said, “and people who think the money should be spent on potholes. I get that.”

City officials say it’s a good dog.

“It’s spirited,” Councilmember Ryan Hutchison told me with a grin. “There’s no doubt it serves as a landmark for those trying to find the park. You can’t miss it.”

“It looks happy. Yellow. Bright,” Kristine Scott chimed in.

“I like it,” Mayor Dennis Michael said. “People say, ‘What in the world is that dog doing there?’ It’s a dog park. Based on comments, I think people are starting to like it. I think it’s adding some character.”

Critics may be barking up the wrong tree.

David Allen writes Sunday, Wednesday and Friday, more to howl about. Email dallen@scng.com, phone 909-483-9339, like davidallencolumnist on Facebook and follow @davidallen909 on Twitter.