Plaza Fountain

James Rossant

1965  |  Concrete


Responding to the Plaza’s crescent-shaped formation, the Plaza Fountain is designed as the focal point of the plaza. This work is one of several designed by artist James Rossant and delightfully personifies the interactivity that Reston founder Robert Simon hoped for when creating the town’s master plan. Plaza Fountain is composed of a brick surface that swells upward and then dips down to form a shallow basin, for a cooling dip.  In the basin are stepping stones and whirlpools. A water fog is emitted from one object and a torrent of water flows down the tallest form. These elements work together as an invitation for children to play and adults to enjoy a refreshing pause from their day. Rossant collaborated with fellow artist and longtime friend Gonzalo Fonseca to create this fountain. According to Rossant’s daughter Juliette, the abstract forms of the fountain were based on sand castles Rossant and Fonseca used to build together during summers at the beach in New York.  She describes: “We spent many summers at the beach watching our fathers carve these elaborate sand castles that sometimes resembled Mayan ruins or Mycenaean fortresses…The pots around [the abstracted forms] that spray water represent the kids who would gather and watch.”

Owned by Lake Anne of Reston, a Condominium

Photo credit: Charlotte Geary

Plaza Fountain