TEXAS TECH UNIVERSITY
The Way West
2007
JOHN BUCK (AMERICAN)
Bronze
Gordon Hall
The female form central to this composition does not portray
an individual; instead, the figure honors the collective
strength of women engaged with higher education. A group
of symbols that rise above the figure’s shoulders emphasize
the workings of her mind rather than her physical features. A
linear element softly zigzags as it stretches skyward, similar
to a rugged mountain trail. This line serves to lead the eye to
four separate symbolic forms representing core concepts of
both life and learning: a lattice-like structure reminiscent of
a DNA, a series of architectural orbs and cones, a flickering
form illuminating the way to knowledge, and, at the apex,
an eye-like sphere seeking undiscovered paths.
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