Documented artwork / seven-figure public sculpture group
Tolerance
Credit as documented: Jaume Plensa
Jaume Plensa’s Tolerance arranges seven human figures along Harmony Walk in Houston’s Buffalo Bayou Park. Installed in 2011 near Allen Parkway and Montrose Boulevard, the group accompanied construction of the Rosemont Bridge. Alphabetic symbols from nine languages build the stainless-steel bodies, while the seven figures represent the world’s continents. The Houston Arts Foundation describes the work as a call for openness across cultures, beliefs and social structures. Each figure rests on a rough-cut granite pedestal lit from within. The installation connects Plensa’s language-based sculptural practice with a pedestrian and bicycle crossing, giving the theme of cultural connection a setting beside a new route across the bayou.
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At a glance
- Year / version
- 2011
- Materials
- stainless steel, stone (granite pedestals)
- Documented setting
- outdoor
- Dimensions
- Artist: seven figures of variable dimensions. Houston Arts Foundation: each sculpture measures 10 feet.
- Dimensions apply to
- Artist and foundation descriptions differ; no axislabel or independent measurement established.
- Availability
- Unconfirmed
Places & versions
Installation history
Historical presentations. A past installation does not establish the current location or suitability for a new site.
2011 installation per Houston Arts Foundation
Harmony Walk, Buffalo Bayou Park, Allen Parkway at Montrose Boulevard, Houston, Texas
Materials and construction
The artist lists seven figures of variable dimensions; the Houston Arts Foundation describes seven identical sculptures measuring 10 feet each. These are source-specific descriptions, not an independent measurement. The artist’s project page and the foundation credit Houston Arts Alliance; the artist’s public-space chronology instead names Greater Houston Community Foundation as 2009 commissioner. The conflicting credits are retained without choosing one as definitive.
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Sources
- houstonartsfoundation.org ↗ · Checked 2026-10-17
- jaumeplensa.com ↗ · Checked 2026-10-17
- jaumeplensa.com ↗ · Checked 2026-10-17