Stumbling into a Vibrant Galaxy
By Juan Carlos Araujo
Harry Powers was an artist, curator, husband, and father. He became a professor at San Jose State in 1964. When he passed away in 2018, Mr. Powers was memorialized in local papers and in a virtual ceremony held in his honor. He was such an important local artist that was unacknowledged during his time. Mr. Powers was creating works with various mediums back then that used technology to express his imagination without any constraints to art theories. His visions of art within astronomy, the historic indigineous people, and geology were far beyond what many other artists were creating around the same time.
A prolific creator of art, Mr. Powers was recognized worldwide and championed locally. He had quite the resume: He organized groups since the late fifties, a mystery and not much to be found on Noon Forum Committee. While a student at Stanford University, he introduced Charles Eames as a guest speaker, and hosted Frank Lloyd Wright, and Louis Armstrong too. His artwork can be found in museum collections at San Jose Museum of Art, MACLA, and ICA, just to name a few.
About a month ago, I went in for a tire change and walked away with a moment after seeing Mr. Powers’ work, I felt his artwork speak to me and I was connected instantly to it. At the least, I feel that writing about it can possibly help in preserving the work. The irony is that Mr. Powers and I—two men from completely different backgrounds, cultures, and life experiences—share similar interests in cosmos, energy, and reinforcing a relationship with mother earth's wealth. His goal was to connect with the audience without narrative, and here we are. The scale of his productions are an inspiration to me as a painter.
“Vibrant Galaxy” was once a monumental mosaic. It now sits abandoned at a National Bank of the West lot on Stevens Creek Blvd. Its natural beauty caught my eye. As one approaches the mosaic, the rocks start to define themselves and their natural essence. The rocks immediately take me back to a trip a few months prior, when Jennifer and I visited the Almaden Quicksilver Museum.
Investigating Mr. Powers’ artwork and his legacy wasn’t my plan, until I noticed the piece was signed, and that it is possibly in jeopardy of getting demolished soon. I hope that my admiration for the work, and interest can help save the 6’ x 9’ tall artwork. Michael Ogilvie, Public Art Director for the City of San Jose, was kind enough to share that Harry Powers himself was trying to preserve “Vibrant Galaxy” since 2017. At this time, it seems that nothing is currently being done to save his Art.
The images on his humble website showcase a lifetime of paintings, installations, and awards. After clicking around, I found it: A photo of the artist, worth a million words, taken when Mr. Powers himself was observing the scale and magnitude of his creation “Vibrant Galaxy” being lifted with a crane in 1963 during its installation.
Letting this Harry Powers artwork go to the dump will be another reminder of how artists are treated as expendables once we are not needed, and are forgotten. It is my mission to share Mr. Powers’ story and art with as many people as possible who can help preserve this relic, if someone is not already doing so. This piece can live in so many places in San Jose; there is absolutely no need to demolish it.
