New S.P.A.C.E. Sculpture!

Today, we got a new resident on the outdoor sculpture pad thanks to some talented artists … and a little elbow grease.

Just a week or so ago, we said vaya con dios to “Star Monster,” the 2010 sculpture in our S.P.A.C.E. (Sculpture Pad Art Collaborative Experiment) series, and made way for the 2011 entry, Cultivating Truth by Concordia College student artist Kyle Meerkins. Meerkins, who had help in fabricating the piece from Duane and Dwight Mickelson, based the design for this sculpture on a couple different concepts. First, the brackets on the side of the red component recall the design of the awning over the Museum’s entrance and acknowledge the present and future of the building. Second, the red component is an abstracted International Harvester cultivating shoe, acknowledging the past use of the Museum building and calling into mind the important act of cultivation.

The installation of this piece took roughly two hours and required the generous assistance of Tim, one of the contractors working next door who took some time out of his day to help with the lift. (UPDATE: Tim works for Edge Electric LLC.)

First, the brackets had to be assembled:

Then, the brackets were lifted into place:

Meerkins (left) and Duane Mickelson discussing the progress:

The red “shoe” was carefully unloaded…

…and lifted into place:

And there you have it! Nicely done, guys!

Want more installation photos? Head over to our Flickr stream.