Katherine
Keefer

Click to see images.

The ODOT PROJECT is a 200 foot running gabion fence between the ODOT (Oregon Department of Transportation) parking lot and Hwy 97 in Bend, Oregon. The fence is 2 feet wide and transitions from 3 to 6 feet in height. The bottom is filled with large basalt rock and the top with smaller red cinder. The rock was donated by ODOT and is what they use to build the roads. There is a red cinder path with lines of poetry referencing roads, journeys, by father and son Oregon poets, William and Kim Stafford. There is also a basalt seating area and an additional smaller wall at the entry to the DMV/ODOT campus. Oregon Arts Commission. Keefer. ($48,000) 2013.

Written Words is a slightly skewed square plaza set within a larger plaza at the Broward County West Regional Library in Plantation, FL.  The square is set askew to symbolize a change of orientation, of perception through the acquisition of new knowledge.   Within the square is a granite sculpture of a just opened "book" as well as an arc of text, four trees, and concentric granite benches set on alternating squares of colored concrete.  Earthwork grass domes that frame and define the square are repeated throughout the larger plaza.  2007 Craftsmanship Award.  Americans for the Arts Award.  Keefer & Gillman. ($150,000) 2007.

Trinity incorporates black granite, boulders, and river rocks.  It is 50' long, 26' wide and 3' high.  The granite forms arms of the cross, inlaid with one arm that is bench height.  The three boulders symbolize the Holy Trinity.  The river rocks are laid in a concentric pattern like water.  This piece defines the entry plaza for Peace Lutheran Church in Danville, CA.   Keefer & Gillman ($20,000) 1999.

Swimmers uses photographic imaging for two windows at Coffman Pool .  Each window is 12' tall by 16' long.  The children depicted are members of the local community.  San Francisco Arts Commission.  Keefer & Gillman ($50,000) 2008.

The California Veteran's Memorial stands under the trees of the California State Capitol Park.  The memorial needed to be formal, timeless, and of sufficient scale to both solemnize and celebrate the sacrifices of the veterans.  To accomplish this we used the formal obelisk shape and then photo-etched images of veterans onto the reflective surface.  In using snapshots from photo albums we wanted to capture the experiences of not only the soldiers themselves but also their families.  Keefer & Gillman. ($500,000) 1998.

Skyballs is located at Anna Cummings Park in Santa Cruz, CA. The site is a steep hill behind which are a series of playing fields.  The blue concrete spheres appear to be rolling down the hill; their movement, color and form offering a sense of humor and playfulness, while their scale (9' diameter) and mass add to their visceral sense of presence.  They appear to emerge mysteriously from a grid of trees planted at the top of the hill.  This is an example of activating a large site, visible from the county road and drawing attention to the play ground and playing fields beyond.  Keefer & Gillman ($55,000) 2001.

The Loma Prieto Earthquake Memorial is an earthwork, steel ladders and granite benches, in a one acre park located in West Oakland, CA.  It was commissioned to commemorate the collapse of the Cypress Freeway and celebrate the community response.  The three twisting steel ladders (28' H) symbolize the ladders members of the community threw up against the collapsed freeway to rescue people trapped between the decks.  The land has been sculpted into waves to show how the earth moved during the quake.  There is informational signage about earthquakes and the Loma Prieto Earthquake in particular.  Keefer, Gillman, and APDW ($680,000) 2005.

The signs are made of 1" steel plates.  HERE at 9' x 25', THERE at 9' x 32'.  The project was commissioned by the City of Berkeley to mark the border between Berkeley and the City of Oakland.  The THERE is a play on the famous retort by Gertrude Stein saying that "there is no there there".  Now there is.  Keefer & Gillman ($55,000) 2005.

Proposals