Mosaic Rolling Bench at General Grant National Memorial

About the Project

The 400-foot-long series of mosaic tile benches surrounding the General Grant National Memorial was created between 1972 and 1974. Chilean-born Pedro Silva led the team of professional artists, including Nelson Mercado, Alan Okada, Warren Fox, as well as architects Moshe Shaw and Philip Danzig. Thousands of community volunteers pitched in. In 1994, CITYarts, Inc., under Founder, Creative & Executive Director Tsipi Ben-Haim, invited Pedro Silva to help restore the Mosaic Rolling Bench with his son Tony Silva, community youth, Disney, volunteers, and individuals who worked on the original project. At the time, it was the largest single public art project in the United States. The Mosaic Rolling Bench was commissioned by the National Park Service to commemorate the 100th anniversary of President Ulysses S. Grant’s designation of Yellowstone as the first National Park. The project sought to raise community awareness of President Grant’s historical significance and to beautify the area around the Memorial, which saw very few visitors in the then-dilapidated neighborhood. It offered the community an opportunity to participate in a creative endeavor that brought together local families, Columbia University students, graffiti crews, and professional artists, with the common goal of making a lasting positive impact on the neighborhood.

Restoration

CITYarts returns to the Mosaic Rolling Bench yearly to keep the mosaic looking its best! This summer, mosaic artist Elina Rosenblum will lead our 2024 restoration and re-creation projects. Click to learn more.

Below: Photos from Summer 2023 Restoration with volunteers from NYU.