A Contemplation on Peace

"A Contemplation on Peace" is a metal sculpture with cutouts revealing brightly colored painted images. The piece is by Kemba Opio of Austin, TX. The sculpture can be viewed on the east side of the Margaret Carpenter Recreation Center parking lot in Thornton, Colorado.

The sculpture is two-sided, with each side measuring 28' in length. The side facing the parking lot (east/southeast) has words in multiple languages. The side facing Colorado Blvd. (west/northwest) has images only.

The art was completed in June 2023.

"A Contemplation on Peace" was designed to replace a previous "Peace Wall" that utilized the same curving, cement form. The original "Peace Wall" had small, ceramic tiles with art painted by city residents and staff, and was created in response to September 11th. The original wall utilized materials that were not designed for outdoor applications, and the tiles experienced significant damage from the Colorado weather, including crumbling, separating glaze, and falling off the wall. When the "Peace Wall" could no longer be adequately restored or maintained, it was decommissioned (2022).

The new "A Contemplation on Peace" utilizes the original cement wall. The artist collaborated with the Thornton community, having residents share their answers to "what does peace mean to you?". Community responses included several different languages; a professional translator helped translate additional responses into the most common languages spoken by Thornton residents.

The text responses to "what does peace mean to you?" were integrated into the artist's design. Images of humans and native flowers are visible on both sides of the sculpture.

Artist Kemba Opio provided this statement about the art:

"The inspiration for “A Contemplation on Peace” Thornton Peace Wall Public Art was a contemporary approach to re-imagining the original 2003 piece created in response to the September 11th attacks. The wall aimed to serve as a reminder then and now that peace begins at home. This re-imaged peace wall directly reflects the diverse community of Thornton through the figurative imagery and text of some of the multiple languages spoken within the community. Text all translated from the quote, “Peace is harmony and respect in spite of differences.” A selected quote from a community member through the community engagement portion of this project.

As the artist, I found inspiration through this being a collaborative process of blending different ideas, subject matters and materials integrated to provide space to allow the viewer to think about, 'What does peace mean to them?'"