User:Llwrce/Spokane Sculpture Walk

[[File:|thumb |alt=Rotary Riverfront Fountain, Spokane |The Rotary Riverfront Fountain located at the entrance of Riverfront Park in Spokane, Washington.]]

Spokane Sculpture Walk is a sculpture garden in Spokane, Washington, U.S.A., consisting of 20 sculptures mostly located in Riverfront Park along the Spokane River Centennial Trail, stretching from the campus of WSU-Spokane to the Monroe Street Bridge. Some of the more well-known pieces in the group include Dorothy Fowler's Michael P. Anderson (2006), Ken Spiering's The Childhood Express (1990), David Govedare's The Joy of Running (1984), and Sister Paula Turnbull's Goat (1974).

Public Art in Spokane

In 1981, the City of Spokane introduced “% for Art,” which mandates that 1 percent of specific capital construction costs be used to purchase public art for the city in conjunction with the Public Facilities District and Spokane Arts Commission. However, some sculptures have been donated by other entities. For example, The Joy of Running was provided by the Lilac Bloomsday Association. In addition to the Sculpture Walk, public art has been extended to the Spokane International Airport, along with the various public swimming pools in Spokane.

In 1988, the Spokane City Council designated the area stretching along the Spokane River from the west side of the INB Performing Arts Center to the Division Street Bridge as a “sculpture walk.” The Spokane Parks and Recreation Department is charged with maintaining the walk, while the Spokane Arts Commission is responsible for organizing the installation of the sculptures.

The Layout

Having since been expanded, the Spokane Sculpture Walk starts at WSU-Spokane with Patrick Zentz's Riverpoint Observatory (2002). With a transparent roof illustrating the topography of the region, a sundial casts a shadow which lines up with markers during the summer and winter equinoxes. It is one of three sculptures on the Riverpoint campus.

The majority of the art is situated on the Centennial Trail in and around Riverfront Park. The final piece on the Sculpture Walk, The Place Where Ghosts of Salmon Jump, is a poem in the shape of a granite spiral. It was written by local author Sherman Alexie. Some of the sculptures on the walk were installed for the 1974 World's Fair and Expo, which took place on what is now Riverfront Park.

Significant Sculptures

• Michael P. Anderson in front of the Spokane Convention Center
  Dorothy Fowler’s Michael P. Anderson (2006) is the most recent sculpture added to the walk. Located behind the INB Performing Arts Center, the sculpture was installed in honor of Michael P. Anderson, an astronaut and Spokane native who died in the Columbia space shuttle tragedy in 2003.

Other Sculptures

• Cooperation
  Cooperation, Michiro Kosuge (1998)
• Light Reading
  Light Reading, Peter Reiquam (2006)
• a corten steel sheep sculpture overlooking the raging Spokane River
  Mountain Sheep', Ken Spiering and students
• 
  Riverpoint Observatory, Patrick Zentz (2002)

References

<references>

External links

• example.com

[[:Category:Sculpture gardens, trails and parks]] [[:Category: Spokane, Washington]] [[:Category: Spokane County, Washington]]