"How to Make a Good Day": Scott and Ene Constable on Crafting a Meaningful Life
For the team behind Wowhaus Studio, great public art isn't just about design; it's about creating purpose, meaning, and joy. They apply this philosophy in their daily lives, too—and so can you.
“How to Make a Good Day”: Scott and Ene Constable on Crafting a Meaningful Life
by
Scott and Ene Constable share a vast and eclectic portfolio. Married since 1989, the artists have suspended a life-sized orca—crafted from local hardwoods—in the lobby of a Washington middle school, and built a plaza of raindrop-shaped swiveling seats for a park in a Santa Rosa, California, neighborhood once ravaged by wildfires. Their Wowhaus design team has installed a cast-bronze crane (an ancient symbol of justice) outside a Denver law center, and created furniture and other structures for Alice Waters’ Edible Schoolyard Project in Berkeley.
“Sometimes our projects start with an exercise where we pretend we just landed on Earth,” says Scott. “What are the current challenges? What’s happening in terms of culture, and nature? Where do they intersect? What are the cultural or natural forces at play in our sponsoring city, be it Nashville, Chattanooga, or Oakland? It’s almost like we’re creating a site-specific intervention that people will interact with. We want it to feel like it belongs there and is integrated deeply.”
“One of the phrases I use is ‘a catalyst for community.’ It should feel like it was there first,” says Ene, “and everything else grew up around it. Like when you go to a place like Rome, and you come across those pieces of art and architecture in the landscape.”
Though their philosophy is provocative, and their public artworks beautiful and imaginative, I was drawn to the Constables by their ongoing joint project of four decades: What Makes a Good Day?
It’s a good question. And though the answer will be different for everyone, their quest attracted me. Making good days is a craft that I, too, hope to master.
 | A guest post by
|