Courtesy of Sarah Brayman

Last week, Brunswick Public Art (BPA) announced that a design had been selected for an art installation along the Androscoggin River to honor the Frank J. Wood Bridge, slated for demolition later this year. The winning design was created by Laura Haddad ’88 and Tom Drugan, Seattle-based artists who focus on large-scale sculptural projects. BPA plans to fundraise privately to cover the cost of the piece, estimated to be between $250,000 and $350,000.

In June of 2025, BPA announced an open call for designs of a sculpture that would use repurposed steel from the Frank J. Wood Bridge to honor its place in Brunswick’s history while also introducing a contemporary addition to the downtown. Sarah Brayman, president of BPA and a former town council member, announced the decision at last Tuesday night’s town meeting.

Sarah Brayman, president of BPA and a former town council member, announced the decision at last Tuesday night’s town meeting.

“It sort of came organically out of the community,” Brayman said. “Everyone I ever mentioned this to … found this really exciting as a concept to do something out of this. And we wanted to honor the bridge. We wanted to honor that location.”

Brayman, an artist herself, highlighted the creative and environmental ingenuity of using the repurposed steel in the installation.

“There was one project in the country that has done something like this, and their approach was very different,” she said. “I love the idea of: Let’s do something bold. Let’s do something that is nationally unique. Let’s take a risk here. And there’s some Yankee ingenuity in this, because you’re reusing the parts, and we all know reusing is better for the climate…. It’s very exciting for artists to work with material of this quality.”

Haddad described the project’s singularity in an email to the Orient.

“After decades working in public art, we had never seen anything like that,” she wrote. “The [Frank J. Wood] Bridge art project is incredibly challenging in terms of handling and refurbishing the large parts, structural engineering and the logistics of incorporating not only the sculpture but its foundations and lighting into a new park.”

The proposed installation, according to Haddad, is intended to function as an access point to the river, uniting the landscape and the Brunswick downtown.

“The sculpture is an abstract wave-like form, playing on the double meaning of a water or energy wave and the wave of a hand as a greeting,” Haddad wrote. “The artwork is proposed to be located close to where the historic bridge touches down. It will create a gateway to the Androscoggin River. The art expresses the movement and energy of the falls that are part of the hydroelectric dam, as well as the progressive spirit of the Brunswick community.”

As a Bowdoin alum, Haddad hopes that students will interact with the piece.

“I hope that our sculpture will draw students off campus and into downtown Brunswick to explore not only the art but also the river, the art studios and other businesses at Fort Andross and downtown shops and restaurants. It will be a landmark in the community, a place that people pass by, visit and meet friends at,” she wrote.

The announcement was met with mixed reactions from Brunswick residents. On a Facebook post by the Town of Brunswick, hundreds of users lamented the proposal, criticizing its modernity, the lack of public consent and its potential to obstruct river views. One user wrote, “Please reconsider and take these overwhelmingly negative comments as ‘public comment.’ Not a fan of this selection.”

In response to the criticism, Haddad explained that this proposal is just the beginning of an evolving design process.

“We have a long and successful track record of creating public art,” she wrote. “Let us take the time to work through this unique process. We have heard the comments, and they are useful in helping us think about how the design can evolve. Have faith and wait and see how the concept develops into a piece that will resonate with generations of people to come.”

Brayman highlighted that BPA is considering public feedback as it moves forward.

“We’re paying attention,” she said. “What we need to do is slow the process down a little bit. And [Haddad] has been great with some ideas of maybe how we might get some public input. We’ve started to reach out to community stakeholders who have been involved in various things related to this project. And we’ll be doing more of a community process to get some feedback.”