A giant waterwheel installed at the end of Pier 66 near 25th Street was inaugurated at a ceremony in Hudson River Park yesterday. The 30-foot, stainless steel waterwheel uses the Hudson River’s changing tide to power a connected odometer.

Titled “Long Time,” the artwork was designed by a local artist, Paul Ramirez Jonas, 42, who said he wanted to create a piece to represent human existence. “Although it was created with the improbable goal of marking the duration of our lives, species, civilizations, and even the planet, its more immediate intent is to place human existence within a geologic time frame,” Mr. Jonas said.

Mr. Jonas began designing the waterwheel in 2000, working with marine engineers to craft a machine that was durable and resilient enough to withstand constantly changing tides and currents, as well as floating debris.

The Hudson River Park ceremony celebrated the installation of “Two Too Large Tables” by artists Allan and Ellen Wexler. Their artwork consists of two 16-square-foot stainless steel planes, one of which serves as a community table and is 30 inches high, while the other functions as a shade pavilion and hangs 7 feet above the ground.