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C.W. Post Builds Permanent Labyrinth on Campus
47-foot maze will provide a quiet place
for meditation and contemplation
College life can be a torrent of activity that leaves little time
for quiet contemplation. Even those who find the time can't always
find the place. That will change this week at the C.W. Post Campus
of Long Island University, as crews of ceramics students continue
construction on a 47-foot permanent labyrinth.
Labyrinths, or mazes, have captured the imagination for years.
The origins of these winding, circular pathways can be traced back
to ancient Greece. In Medieval times, churches built labyrinths
into their floors as a symbol of the spiritual journey of pilgrims.
The C.W. Post labyrinth project is spearheaded by Cathy Soref, a
member of the campus's Council of Overseers and an Oyster Bay resident.
She brought a temporary canvas labyrinth to the campus in October
1999, during the Turning 2000 conference that explored the new millennium.
Reaction to that labyrinth was so positive that Soref decided to
establish a permanent one.
"Every college campus should have a place where students,
faculty and staff can go to meditate on the difficult issues that
affect their lives," said Soref. "This labyrinth will
give them that and more. It will be a place not just for quiet contemplation,
but for their journey toward unity, holiness and self-awareness."
Estimates for the project were so high that Soref nearly abandoned
it. Then along came David Byer-Tyre, a graduate sculpture student
at C.W. Post. He offered to take on the project. The Farmingdale
resident obtained estimates from local contractors and craftsmen,
and recruited students from the ceramics department to help lay
the 38,000 pieces of tile that will make up the labyrinth. Together
they cut the cost of the project by 75 percent.
Byer-Tyre said that the contractors, including World Tile in Copiague,
L&M Construction in Amityville, Love's Premium in North Babylon
and contractor Gary Fong of Amityville, cut their fees by more than
50 percent. Byer-Tyre also credits Professor Frank Olt and students
Lynda Simon and Jihyun Kim for their dedication to the project.
Byer-Tyre designed the labyrinth based on the one at Chartres Cathedral
in Chartres, France. The 13th Century labyrinth is 42 feet in diameter.
At 47 feet in diameter, the C.W. Post labyrinth will beat it by
five feet. In the tradition of labyrinths, it will be level to the
ground. Tiles measuring 16 and 3/4 inches form the main floor, which
was laid in early September. An inlay of 2 1/2-inch tiles cut into
squares, triangles and diamonds of moon green, moon white, terracotta,
terracotta green and moon terracotta, will line the
main path.
The hope is that the labyrinth will become a central gathering
place. Students will be able to visit on their own, clubs and organizations
can use it for informal gatherings, and professors can hold classes
there.
"This project is about unifying the campus," said Byer-Tyre.
"There are so many organizations on campus. But college is
supposed to be an experience that brings everybody together. This
labyrinth will do just that."
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