Walking up downtown Portland’s Southwest 10th Avenue on a rainy late fall day, your head down against the wind, you might be surprised to see a reflection on the dark, wet bricks: A glint of sunlight, almost.

Look up.

A huge circle of gilded bronze, sculpted to look like tree branches bent into a perfect, spoke-less wheel, stands in front of the new Mark Rothko Pavilion. This is “the sun,” created in 2018 by Swiss sculptor Ugo Rondinone. It’s a bright light on a dark day and a glowing echo on a sunny day. Unlike the dark stone sculptures of historical figures that used to sit atop pedestals on the South Park Blocks, it’s warm no matter the weather, bouncing light instead of sucking it in.

And it is an aperture onto the pavilion, which connects disparate pieces and opens the Portland Art

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