When Alexander Liberman’s Covenant sculpture was first unveiled at 39th Street and Locust Walk a little more than 50 years ago, it wasn’t exactly met with rave reviews.
The red abstract steel pipe “provoked a storm of ridicule, approval, apathy, DP humor columns, etc.,” according to an article in the November 1975 issue of the Gazette. The same write-up also recounted a “WXPN-organized attempt to knock it over with sound waves (it failed).”
Yet the sculpture—Penn’s largest—has endured, even while still being the subject of some ridicule as its well-known nickname, “Dueling Tampons,” might suggest.
And to mark its 50th birthday, it received a makeover.
Led by the Penn Art Collection, a two-part conservation project involved structural maintenance last year to support the sculpture’s integrity followed by a repainting of the entire piece this summer. While the 40-foot-tall campus landmark has been lightly repainted before, this marked the first time that it was stripped down to its steel surface and recoated with its original bright red hue, which had faded over time.
The $840,000 restoration project was done in conjunction with Liberman’s estate, conservation specialists, structural engineers, and Penn’s Facilities and Real Estate Services, including University Architect Mark Kocent, who helped manage the construction and redo the landscaping around it.
One thing that still might be a challenge now that construction has been completed? “We’re trying to encourage the community to know that it’s art,” Kocent says, “and it’s not supposed to be climbed on.” —DZ
