Sculptor Martha Jackson Jarvis and her daughter, fellow sculptor Njena Surae Jarvis, received an email this week.
It was a congratulatory missive telling them that they were selected to create the first and largest art piece in the 11th Street Bridge Park over the Anacostia River in D.C.
The duo鈥檚 design, called “Anacostia鈥檚 Sunrise/Sunset Portal,” is a 20-foot glass mosaic sculpture which beat out hundreds of other submissions from around the county. Their piece , according to a news release.
鈥淵our reaction is always, 鈥榠s this real?鈥欌�� the younger artist said, laughing with her mother.
The park is set to open in 2025, becoming the district鈥檚 first elevated park. The space is designed to link neighborhoods on the east and west sides of the river. And, to transform the piers of the old 11th Street bridge that had become an eyesore.
鈥淚t鈥檚 an old community,鈥� Martha Jackson Jarvis said. 鈥淪o it鈥檚 really something to see young people moving into the community, raising their families again. I think it鈥檚 really a landmark event to see that this landscape is opened up to the full community.鈥�
The artists said the Anacostia was their muse on this project. Their design features 11 portals that resemble a wave pulled from the river. The glass mosaic rings set in blue, red and green colors, Njena Jarvis said.
鈥淚t has the color palette of a sunset,鈥� she said. 鈥淭he form of the sculpture is an abstraction of the sun and area reflected on the river.鈥�
This isn鈥檛 the first time the elder Jarvis has worked on projects linked to the Anacostia. More than 20 years ago, she completed a mosaic that wrapped around the Anacostia Metro Station. Her designs pull on the beauty of nature, with many of them incorporating glass mosaics.
Njena Jarvis is an artist in her own right. A graduate of the district鈥檚 Duke Ellington School of the Arts, her work has been featured at the National Portrait Gallery.
But, when the two work together, the artists in them want to take charge. But, the mother-daughter team knows compromise key.
鈥淲hen we don鈥檛 agree, we work at it until we do agree,鈥� Martha Jackson Jarvis said. 鈥淪ometimes it gets rough. And, my husband says, 鈥業鈥檓 going to stay out of here until you two figure out what you鈥檙e doing.”鈥�
And, they always do.
