Victor Solomon creates basketball hoops inspired by the décor of palaces and cathedrals. Recalling his youth as a mixed-race kid in East Boston, he remembers that it was on his neighborhood basketball courts that racial and ethnic distinctions disappeared. While celebrating that inclusivity, his sculptures also acknowledge economic divides between the many who aspire to basketball stardom and the few who achieve it. And, they underscore the precariousness of fame: while designed to precisely mimic actual backboards and hoops, their fragile beauty renders them unable to withstand the shock of a ball hitting them.

Victor Solomon, Church, 2019, stained glass, 24k-gold-plated hand-wrought steel, acrylic, and crystals, 10 x 4 x 4 ft. Courtesy of the artist. © Victor Solomon, photo by Geordy Pearson, courtesy of the artist.