''Gear 23'' is a

public art Public art is art in any media whose form, function and meaning are created for the general public through a public process. It is a specific art genre with its own professional and critical discourse. Public art is visually and physically acce ...

work by artist Steven Feren. It is installed at the

Milwaukee Fire Department The Milwaukee Fire Department provides fire protection and emergency medical services to the city of Milwaukee, Wisconsin. The department is responsible for an area of with a population of 594,833. It is the largest fire department in the Stat ...

's Engine Company #4 station on the northwest side of

Milwaukee Milwaukee ( ), officially the City of Milwaukee, is both the most populous and most densely populated city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin and the county seat of Milwaukee County. With a population of 577,222 at the 2020 census, Milwaukee ...

Wisconsin Wisconsin () is a state in the upper Midwestern United States. Wisconsin is the 25th-largest state by total area and the 20th-most populous. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake M ...

Description

''Gear 23'' presents what appears to be a firefighter's closet. An open framed space made of shiny textured steel includes a top shelf on which four

firefighter's helmet For centuries, firefighters have worn helmets to protect them from heat, cinders and falling objects. Although the shape of most fire helmets has changed little over the years, their composition has evolved from traditional leather to metals (i ...

s are placed. Each helmet displays the name of a firefighter who died in the line of duty. Below the helmets hang four coats on hangers suspended from a brass vertical pole. Below the coats, four sets of boots and trousers rest on a textured steel step. Leaning against the outside of the steps and closet are two coiled

fire hose A fire hose (or firehose) is a high-pressure hose that carries water or other fire retardant (such as foam) to a fire to extinguish it. Outdoors, it attaches either to a fire engine, fire hydrant, or a portable fire pump. Indoors, it can perm ...

s. The hoses, clothing and helmets are made of colorful

mosaic A mosaic is a pattern or image made of small regular or irregular pieces of colored stone, glass or ceramic, held in place by plaster/mortar, and covering a surface. Mosaics are often used as floor and wall decoration, and were particularly pop ...

. The entire sculpture rests on a rectangular concrete pad. According to a ''

St. Petersburg Times The ''Tampa Bay Times'', previously named the ''St. Petersburg Times'' until 2011, is an American newspaper published in St. Petersburg, Florida, United States. It has won fourteen Pulitzer Prizes since 1964, and in 2009, won two in a single ...

'' interview with the artist, "The hanging jackets evoked the image of firefighters waiting for a call. The empty coats seemed to embody the soul of all firefighters, not just the four who died."

References

Public art in the United States Culture of Milwaukee 1992 sculptures Sculptures in Wisconsin {{Public-art-stub