“S” was placed in 1969 in front of the northern entrance into Slovenj Gradec. It is made of metal and is eight metres tall. “S” was originally red, while the two spheres were blue. According to the initial agreement, “S” would be repainted every two years; the colour scheme was stored within the pedestal. However, the planned renovations never occurred. For the sculpture’s renovation in 2019, Pino Poggi decided that the spheres would be yellow and the S would be red. Yellow symbolizes Greek mythology and salvation from contemporary obscurantism: the sun and the light of enlightenment. The red, on the other hand, is a symbol of progress, liberation, and the struggle against backwardness.

“S” is situated at the northern entrance into Slovenj Gradec, and it would be too superficial to search for its meaning solely in the acronym (sphere, sun, Slovenj Gradec …), since “S” – seen from the other side – is “Z”. And, after all, “S” could also represent a question mark. The curved line of “S” is reminiscent of contrapposto and one could easily recognize the contours of a woman’s body in the “S” sign. The sculptor placed two spheres between both curvatures, which could represent the Earth, Sun, or Moon in various combinations, or the male principle of this composition. “S” occupies a central place in Poggi’s artistic work and is part of the cycle of sculptures that mostly remained in the form of models: the AU Alphabet – an alphabet of Arte Utile.

Text: Jernej Kožar