[New post] Five new pieces dedicated at Loveland’s Benson Sculpture Garden
Trevor Reid posted: "Artist Tim Cherry looked for "fun side" of nature when he created Roundbottomus Hippopotamus, one of five new pieces dedicated Saturday in Benson Sculpture Garden. "I wanted a piece that was interactive," he said of the sculpture of a hippo, with its r" Greeley Tribune
Artist Tim Cherry looked for "fun side" of nature when he created Roundbottomus Hippopotamus, one of five new pieces dedicated Saturday in Benson Sculpture Garden.
"I wanted a piece that was interactive," he said of the sculpture of a hippo, with its rounded form, that appears to be peeking out from the grass, " something kids could be inspired about and excited about."
But it wasn't only kids inspired by Cherry's third piece to be placed in the sculpture garden. Adults, too, marveled at the fun nature of the sculpture after the dedication that drew about 100 people.
Artist Felicia created this sculpture, called Four Generations, that now sits on the North Lake Park side of Benson Sculpture Garden, one of five new pieces dedicated on Saturday. (Pamela Johnson / Loveland Reporter-Herald)
Four of the five new pieces, all sculptures, are placed on the North Lake Park side of Benson Sculpture Garden, while the fifth, a forged iron gate, is at the entrance to the park at Aspen Drive and 29th Street. With these new additions, paid for with profits from last summer's Sculpture in the Park, the outdoor display now has 178 pieces valued at over $5 million.
A group of sculptors and business and community leaders sat down 39 years ago and dreamed up the idea of a sculpture show, said Jill Marino, president of the Loveland High Plains Arts Council's board.
"No one ever imagined that their dream would turn into such a nationally acclaimed reality," she said at the dedication ceremony. "And they certainly never envisioned that over the course of 39 years, they would also create a living legacy in the form of Benson Sculpture Garden."
The display draws "tens of thousands of visitors from around the globe" every year, has been recognized as one of the 200 most modern and contemporary art sites in the world and has been hailed as one of the 20 must-see art sites in the United States, Marino said.
Every year, Sculpture in the Park draws thousands to Benson Sculpture Garden and raises money for new pieces and to pay for the upkeep of the collection. This year, the show will be held Aug. 11-13.
Loveland resident Maryjo Morgan, a member of the city's Visual Arts Commission, and her friend Susanne Stuka, visiting from Germany, look at a sculpture called Morning Flight by Adam Schultz on Saturday after a ceremony to dedicate five new pieces to Benson Sculpture Garden. Four of the new sculptures, and the dedication ceremony, are on the North Lake Park side of the sculpture garden. (Pamela Johnson / Loveland Reporter-Herald)
The proceeds from the 2022 show paid for the five new pieces — Roundbottomus Hippopotamus, Amazing Grace by Shari Vines, Four Generations by Felicia, Morning Flight by Adam Schultz and Benson Sculpture Gardens Entrance Gate by Black Birch Studio and Makely Metal Arts.
James Makely, one of the artists who created the gate, spoke of how they used the "ancient techniques" of blacksmithing applied to contemporary design to create a work inspired by nature. The gates, all made of heated and hammered iron, appear to be leaves and stems, vegetation.
Felicia, an artist who specializes in depictions of Native American people, said her piece, Four Generations, was inspired by a visit to the Pueblo reservation in Taos, New Mexico. She said she is inspired to share native cultures with her art.
"They shouldn't be forgotten," she said. "They just started the whole universe for us."
Shari Vines is a Loveland artist who created a bronze of a blue heron. She was inspired by a photograph of a heron with its unfurled wings and flipped digits, wondering if the bird had spotted the people nearby, curious as to what it was thinking at the time. That inspiration is now, forever perched in time, in the Loveland sculpture display.
"He knows he can fly away, but he hasn't yet," said Vines. "If you happen to walk by, I'll let you enjoy the moment and see if you can figure out what he's thinking."
Steve Palmer of Evans snaps a picture of the plaque for Amazing Grace, a sculpture of a heron by Loveland artist Shari Vines. Palmer said that Vines is is aunt. He and other family members attended a dedication ceremony of new art for Benson Sculpture Garden on Saturday. (Pamela Johnson / Loveland Reporter-Herald)
Towering tall within the park is Morning Flight by Schultz, a sculpture of a hawk in flight. Part of the design is a depiction of that hawk's shadow on one stone and that of a running rabbit on another.
"It's about life and life's journey," said Schultz, adding that spiral markings on his third sculpture in the park reiterate that message of a journey. "You either fly toward something or fly away from something, but you're all on a journey."
After the dedication ceremony, those gathered wandered through the park to look at the new pieces, marveling at their detail and beauty.
"It's amazing," said Loveland resident Kari Jefcoat, a volunteer at the sculpture garden who attended with neighbor and fellow volunteer Kathleen Wilson. "Gorgeous."
She then gestured toward Schultz' sculpture and added: "Perfection, right there."
Towering gates, forged out of iron and designed to look like nature, are located at the entrance to Benson Sculpture Garden at Aspen Drive and 29th Street. The gate was made by Black Birch Studio and Makely Metal Art, one of five new pieces added to the outdoor display in 2023. (Pamela Johnson / Loveland Reporter-Herald)
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