Seven proposed sculptures for two Bend roundabouts going on display for a week
BEND, Ore. (KTVZ) – Design renderings of seven proposed sculptures for the Powers Road & Brookswood Boulevard roundabout in SW Bend and Empire Avenue/Butler Market Road/27th Street roundabout in NE Bend will be on view from July 25-August 9, Art in Public Places said Thursday.
Each sculpture design will be on display for one week at both the downtown Bend Deschutes Public Library and at the Larkspur Community Center.
Powers & Brookswood Roundabout Empire/Butler Market/27th Roundabout
Downtown Library, July 25 to August 1 Larkspur Center, July 25- August 1
Larkspur Center, August 2-9 Downtown Library, August 2-9
Community members of all ages are invited to review and provide input on the three finalists’ works of art mutually selected by the Art in Public Places board and a City of Bend representative. The two sculptures selected will be included in the public art collection owned by the city of Bend.
The Butler Market Road/Empire Ave./27th Street roundabout opened in October 2020 as part of the Empire Corridor Road Improvements project in NE Bend. This roadworks project extended Empire Avenue and added new sidewalks and bike lanes and created three new roundabouts for this heavily traveled route. About 20,000 cars drive on both Butler Market Road and 27th Street each day.
The Powers Road & Brookswood Boulevard Roundabout is located a half mile from the Bend Parkway offering north and southbound access to Highway 97. The Powers & Brookswood Roundabout provides direct access to the west side of Bend off the Parkway. This four-mile north/south route along Brookswood Boulevard supports about 13,500 cars each day. The Powers Road & Brookswood Boulevard roundabout is busy, with around 23,000 cars each day, with most of the cars coming from the Bend Parkway exit.
“The breadth of talented artists for this selection is quite impressive. All seven artists have visited the sites and spent some time in the community, which has assisted in the inspiration for their designs. We welcome the public input to help select two sculptures that are meaningful and speak to our community,” said Romy Mortensen, president of AIPP.
The finalists were selected from a call to artists that attracted over 150 submissions for the two roundabouts.
The three artists for Empire/Butler Market/27th Roundabout are Jodie Bliss from Monument, Colorado; Jan Hoy, from Coupeville, Washington and Michael Stutz from Fallbrook, California.
The four artists for Powers & Brookswood Roundabout are Jessica Bodner from Emigrant, Montana; Damon Hyldreth from San Francisco, CA; Michael Szabo from San Francisco, CA and Joshua Wiener from Boulder, Colorado.
The sculptures selected for each roundabout are projected to be installed in the spring or early summer of 2023.
AIPP has created two pages on its website offering the community the opportunity to contribute their public input online. AIPP welcomes public comments online increasing the community engagement with new public art in Bend. Images of the sculpture designs for the two roundabouts can be found at:
https://artinpublicplaces.org/empire-butlermrkt-27th.html
https://artinpublicplaces.org/brookswood-powers.html
Funding for the public art is primarily from the Bend Foundation, a non-profit founded and funded by Brooks Scanlon and Brooks Resources Corporation and community donations. AIPP is a nonprofit organization that provides art to various locations throughout the city of Bend.
For more information, visit https://artinpublicplaces.org/.
