IPAR Supporters Get a Look at Next Project

Initiative for Public Art Reston (IPAR) supporters got a peek on Thursday at what Reston's next public art installation will look like.

At a fundraiser held at, IPAR president Joe Ritchey introduced Baltimore artist Mary Ann Mears as the winner of a recent open call for artists to design an installation at Hyatt Park across from the

Mears' proposed aluminum sculpture - which is still in the planning stages - will involve several curved, colorful 18-foot structures.

Mears says she tried to keep Reston's relationship with nature in mind when designing the work.

"There is a challenge with the asthetic and feeling of Reston Town Center," Mears said. "It seemed to me, to put a piece of sculpture there, it should have a dialogue with the architecture. You want to create a sense of anticipation of [walking into the Town Center]"

Ritchey, who founded IPAR four years ago, says public art has always been a foundation of Reston. He says Reston founder Robert E. Simon, who was at the reception on Thursday, had this in mind when he envisioned Reston in the 1960s.

"I hope Mary Ann's work will be integrated into the space in the same thoughtful way Bob Simon [integrated art] did with Lake Anne," says Ritchey. "Forty-plus years later, kids are still playing on "the boat" at Lake Anne."

IPAR unveiled its first work, in September 2010.