“Portal for the Agrarian” by Greg Mueller.

Six new sculptures are now a part of the Indiana University East landscape. The pieces for the Outdoor Sculpture Exhibit began arriving July 23 for installation.

The sculptures are part of a juried exhibit. Each piece is on loan and will be on campus for two years. Artists from across the United States were invited to submit their work for consideration to be included in the Outdoor Sculpture Exhibit.

The jurors for the exhibit are Greg Hull, associate professor of sculpture at the Herron School of Art and Design, IU East assistant professors of Fine Arts Ann Kim and Carrie Longley, and Ed Thornburg, art director.

IU East has nine sculpture pads that were added to outside areas during the campus construction and renovation of the quad, completed in August 2014. The renovation of the quad was designed to provide a more amiable space for campus gatherings and events. These improvements included additional landscaping with a rain garden, pergola, seating, new perimeter trees and replacement of some of the inner sidewalks.

Carrie Longley, assistant professor of fine arts said it was a fun challenge to choose sculptures to exhibit on the IU East campus.

“We reviewed and scored over 100 sculptures from artists residing all across the country. One of our exhibiting artists, Jeffie Brewer, traveled 990 miles from Texas to deliver his work. He explained that he limits his travel for delivering artwork to 1,000 miles. Our location came in 10 miles under his limit,” Longley said.

Hull said one of the drivers in his decision making was how each piece would function as a mark on the larger campus landscape while also engaging audiences that investigate the work more closely.

“It’s great to see them in place. I like where they were placed and how well they seem to relate to their surroundings,” Hull said. “It’s also nice to see that these hold up visually in person. The scale and visual impact is right in line with expectations based on the proposal images. I’m really pleased to see how well it all came together.  I’ll be excited to see all of these pieces in different settings as the seasons change.”

Hull said he was very pleased to be invited to participate on the jury and to work with the other jurors.

“Carrie, Ann, Ed and I seemed to compliment one another’s conceptual/aesthetic sensibilities. I think those different voices helped shape a final group of works that has a shared level of quality while also presenting a diverse and interesting range of visual concerns, a broad enough range to be interesting and accessible to a wide variety of audiences,” Hull said.

Longley said the jurors chose artworks that have a strong visual presence in the open and natural setting of the campus quad and also have dynamic design from multiple vantage points.

“As a juror, I’m drawn to works which feature unique combinations of the familiar and imagined.  With much of the work, the use of familiar materials initially captured my attention, while the imagined designs encouraged me to further investigate and admire the work,” Longley said. “I would like to commend and thank the artists for participating in this exhibition. My sincere congratulations to the exhibiting artists who were able to transform their ideas and materials into innovative works of art.”

Artists and Outdoor Sculptures
•    Jeffie Brewer, Nacogdoches, Texas, “Red Bird,” Steel
•    Scott Garrard, East Grand Rapids, Mich.,”Teapot Boogie View 3,” Steel
•    Greg Mueller, Spartanburg, S. C., “Portal for the Agrarian,” reclaimed agricultural salvage
•    Dora Natella, Granger, Ind.,”Sentinel,” bronze, steel
•    John Richardson, Detroit, Michigan, “Case Study 27,” welded steel and cast aluminum
•    William Vannerson, Kansas City, Mo., “Borborygmid 7,” steel