Friday, August 1, 2008

August Theme Day "Metal"




Today is City Daily Photo Theme Day, and for August the theme is 'metal'.

This is the "Eco Earth Globe" at Riverfront Park in downtown Salem. It began life as a large pressurized tank, known as the "acid ball", used by Boise Cascade for their paper mill operation. The steel ball, 26 feet in diameter, was built in Portland in 1960 and pushed by tugboat up the Willamette River to the former mill site. The mill was closed in 1982 and the property acquired by the City. The 22-acre parcel was opened as Riverfront Park in 1996.

Two-inch ceramic tiles were attached to the ball ( 86,115 in total ) to form the continents and seas and 200 ceramic icons, which were created by students and professional artists.

More info from Blue Mountain Eagle News, authors, Theda Damon Weatherford and Heather Sheedy. Read the complete article <here>.

You can view thumbnails for all participants of this month's City Daily Photo Theme Day. There are 183 blogs taking part around the world.

13 comments:

Lydia said...

Was over at PDP and thought it would be fun to see what your Salem metal shot was. Great pick! This should intrigue people. I think this is one of the coolest things Salem has done in decades.
(p.s. I WANT that horse you photographed yesterday at the antique shop!)

Jilly said...

What a great choice! That's so colourful and so interesting.

Columbo said...

I love going to Riverfront Park and looking at the 'Globe'. The kids especially enjoy it which gives them a connection with the world.

Louis la Vache said...

That is an interesting globe - and certainly an appropriate choice for theme day.

("Louis" didn't participate in theme day this month.)

"Louis" thanks you for visiting San Francisco Bay Daily Photo and for your kind comments about Mme. la Vache. She's the best thing that's ever happened to "Louis!"

USelaine said...

Two things I love, maps and mosaics, combined in one!

Janet Kincaid said...

I love it when old paper mill sites are recovered and restored or repurposed for public use. What a great way to recycle parts of the mill! Great photo!

Happy Theme Day!

Janet

Anonymous said...

Ohh Wow...that is a great idea...
Claps !

Pasadena Adjacent said...

What a novel idea for finding a second use for the giant orb. Glad to hear it wasn't loaded onto the rails and sent to China for scrap.

Sally said...

A lovely colourful entry in the theme day!
Sydney Daily Photo

melanie said...

Voilà une utilisation intéressante des friches industrielles . Un résultat merveilleux ! Le mond eest beau et beaucoup de personnes se sont rassemblées pour réaliser cette oeuvre d'art. Je suis contente de la découvrir

Columbo said...

It was one of the coolest things Salem has. Kids and adults alike can enjoy the connection with other parts on our globe.

Jim Klenke said...

Very neat, I like the viking ship in the Atlantic.

Uma por Dia said...

Wow, great photo and wonderful choice!
If you not a photografer you should be!
I'm glad I came to your blog.