Beckoning Cistern

The Beckoning Cistern at 81 Vine Street is designed in the shape of a hand emerging from a sleeve. The hand reaches toward the downspout, which leans from the face of the 81 Vine Building to meet the hand’s index finger. The Beckoning Cistern’s designer, environmental artist Buster Simpson, compares the sculpture to the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel, with Adam reaching to touch the hand of God.

Symbolic as the sculpture may be, it is also functional. Roof runoff flows from the downspout to the outstretched index finger and divides, some cascading over the thumb into a water garden and series of pools, and some flowing into the cistern to be stored for later use, such as watering the garden.

The Beckoning Cistern is a 10-foot high, 6-foot diameter blue corrugated cylinder constructed of galvanized aluminum (the sleeve) with a green metal hand emerging from its top. The entire structure is placed on a tilted concrete slab set in the water garden. The water garden with its three cascading planters is, in turn, set in lush native plantings of ferns, shrubs, and woodland plants. A smaller, companion garden nestles against the building; the sidewalk passes between the two.