| Watertower | |
|---|---|
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| Artist | Tom Fruin |
| Year | 2017 |
| Type | Plexiglas and steel |
| Dimensions | 610 cm × 610 cm (240 in × 240 in) |
| Location | Milwaukee, Wisconsin |
| 43°01′36.6″N 87°54′58.9″W / 43.026833°N 87.916361°W | |
| Owner | Coakley Brothers Company |
Watertower is a public art work by artist Tom Fruin. It is located just south of downtown Milwaukee, Wisconsin on top of the seven-story Coakley Brothers Company warehouse in the Walker's Point neighborhood.
Watertower is a sculpture made of multicolored Plexiglas panels assembled in a frame of welded steel in the form of a water tower. The sculpture's form references the once-common rooftop water tanks, most of which were removed decades ago.[1] Sunlight illuminates the artwork by day, and interior lights make it highly visible at night. Fruin salvages the Plexiglas used in his sculptures.[2]
Coakley Brothers CEO Peggy Coakley commissioned the artwork for the rooftop of her family business after viewing a similar work by Fruin during a visit to New York. This is the artist's sixth water tower.[3] The artwork is part of a $6 million renovation of the Coakley warehouse.[4] According to a statement by Coakley, her goal with the commission is that "the public will see the sculpture as a symbol of pride for the city's diverse and vibrant citizens and a symbol of how neighborhoods and cities can be progressive and forward-thinking, while still being true to their roots."[2]