This metro commissioned artwork in progress title, "Saint Monica's Tears," for expo line downtown Santa Monica station by artist Walter Hood takes its inspiration from the cities namesake, Saint Monica. "The weeping saint" was said to have shed tears every night over her son Augustine's hedonistic lifestyle. Her watering eyes came to the mind of Father Juan Crespi upon first sight of the springs-whose water cascaded down the sandstone face of Santa Monica’s coastal cliffs. The springs are named Kuruvungna by the Tongva Indian tribe.
Composed of sandstone and hand-formed glass, Saint Monica’s Tears will visualize this layered cultural and geological history in sculptural form.