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Fitzroy’s Guitar
Alex Mendez, (Decatur, IN)
14’ x 3’ x 9’
Gregg Park, 2204 Washington Avenue
Mild steel- See More from this Artist
Sculpture Description
Fitzroy’s Guitar uses instrument symbolism to explore personal or cultural identity. A large-scale steel sculpture resembling the abstracted silhouette of a guitar, this piece merges musicality with monumental form. With its rhythmic curves and linear balance, Fitzroy’s Guitar feels both industrial and lyrical — a sculptural tribute to sound, structure, and personal mythology.
Engagement Exercise
Grade Level: 7–10
Project Title: Musical Monuments
Objective: Blend music and sculpture through abstracted form.
Activity: Students choose a favorite instrument or sound and create a large-scale drawing or model inspired by its shape and rhythm. Optional: integrate sound elements.
Sign Info
Fitzroy’s Guitar transforms the familiar shape of a musical instrument into a monumental steel form, merging industrial material with lyrical movement. Referencing Trinidadian jazz guitarist Fitzroy Coleman—who famously built his first guitar from scrap materials and taught himself to play—the sculpture reflects themes of improvisation, ingenuity, and personal identity. The work employs abstraction—simplifying or reshaping recognizable forms to emphasize ideas rather than literal detail—allowing the guitar’s silhouette to become both symbol and sculptural structure.
Rhythmic curves and balanced lines suggest music translated into space, while the vertical, totemic form invites viewers to consider how sound, memory, and cultural storytelling can be embodied in physical materials. Through scale and symbolism, steel becomes a medium for rhythm, resilience, and personal mythology.
