Hutchinson

Hutchinson Sculpture Stroll Expands

By Justin Beck, board president, Hutchinson Public Arts Commission

Founded in 1855, Hutchinson was created by a creative, musical family that originally set aside 15 acres for parkland. Today, the city is home to 13 rotating sculptures and 15 permanent pieces. Most of the sculptures are in one of the 41 City Parks, or nestled along the Luce Line Trail and Crow River. In 2013, the Hutchinson Public Arts Commission created the Sculpture Stroll as a way to showcase work from artists and to beautify public spaces. The Sculpture Stroll has grown; initially featuring 6, now 13. In 2021, the Sculpture Stroll added four movable blocks that are designed to showcase smaller sculptures on the newly renovated Main Street (State Highway 15). The new blocks have expanded the Sculpture Stroll’s artistic reach by creating spaces for smaller scale artwork. Artists apply each year and pieces are chosen by the Public Arts Commission. The sculptures are juried in based on artists merits like creativity, ingenuity, material, durability, and cohesiveness with the environment where it will be displayed. “It’s important to make sure that the piece fits the local environment, for example in 2021, we placed Shark! along the river. It almost feels like it came out of the water.” shared Morgan Baum, Public Art Commissioner. “Last year we had more than fifty applicants for our thirteen spots. Our Stroll is one of the best in the state and the caliber of the artists goes up every year.” To learn more about the free Hutchinson Sculpture Stroll visit: https://hutchinsonpublicarts.com/

Fluid Connections by Ryan and James Pedersen

Mod Pod by Gail Katz Gaia by Karman Rheault Time to Fly by Kyle Fokken