Italian sculptor Costantino Nivola was known in NYC for his large-scale bas-reliefs, murals, and free-standing sculptural installations. One of his most visible was the herd of 18 cast-concrete horse sculptures he created in 1965 as part of a landscaped modernist plaza at Stephen Wise Towers between West 90th and West 91st Streets. (It’s ok if you thought they were llamas…) The horses, while beloved by kids and adults alike, definitely took some knocks through the decades. Noses and tails disappeared. When a water main break flooded the plaza in 2021, the Nivola horses suffered major casualties. They were unceremoniously cut off of their plaza home and carted away. But these horses did not head off into the sunset, never to be seen again. Their story is one of renewal and return, and Landmark West! is excited to have two of the conservators of the Nivola horses, Mary Jablonski and Ed FitzGerald, share the process of researching these public artworks and the many steps of conservation involved in returning them to their UWS plaza and community.
