The sculptures are back! Every year, Mankato, MN has local artists create sculptures to adorn the downtown streets for the year. This typically happens on Mothers' Day. That wasn't the case this year.
The last month has seen empty sculpture pedestals which, combined with shuttered stores and empty cafes, made the place feel abandoned. This weekend, however, the new sculptures are up!
I think this flying boar-beast is my favorite of this year's selections. It sits atop a metal base and looks down at passers-by.
Now this one would be great in a garden, especially if it were about twice as tall and with a much larger canopy. It could serve as a shade structure and vine trellis, without the danging wire, anyway. It looks as if that was added for extra support or something.
Well, this one isn't part of the sculptures but merits a spot in this post. A local artist has been brought in to decorate the huge grain silos at the local mill, where grain is loaded onto freight trains. It has been interesting to see the progress. As you can see, it is still incomplete. The opposite side looks finished, but this angle made for a more interesting composition.
A strange wind vane has taken the corner where last year's wolf stood. The wolf, in turn, replaced one of my all-time favorites—the steel vulture. Anyway, this new one's splash of color is nice to see. The entire thing hinges and turns in the wind. It'll be interesting to see how well that hinge works in the ice and snow.
Okay, this last one isn't really art, unless you count the photo. It's difficult to get a nice photo of this spectacular church because the city has grown up around it. This angle seems to be some sort of statement, though!
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