©LA Metro

Saint Monica, the weeping saint, was said to have shed tears every night over her son Augustine’s hedonistic lifestyle. Her watering eyes were the image that came to the mind of Father Juan Crespi upon first sight of the pair of sacred springs, named Kuruvungna by the local Tongva Indian tribe, located on the present border of Santa Monica and West LA. The power of water is integral to the geologic history of Santa Monica. Water shaped the coastline, eroding the sandstone at its edges. And yet, most residents seldom engage this geology. This same sandstone that is rarely encountered in the current existing landscape has become a time-honored building material, used for centuries in construction. Its softness allows it to be easily shaped. The proposal for an iconic public sculpture at the Expo Terminus Station springs from this enmeshing of geological and cultural history—“Saint Monica’s Tears.” From the geological, cubic sandstone pieces (2.3’x1.5’x4’) are stacked along the western edge of the station, with each piece saw cut along its top and bottom faces, and hand cut varying angles on its sides. This wall confronts Metro riders with underlying geology of their home region.