(Three Rising, photo courtesy of Art in Public Places)
New Public Art to be installed at 15th Street and Reed Market Road.
A three-piece sculpture designed with overlapping curved shapes, reaching heights of 11-to-17 feet was installed at 15th Street and Reed Market Road Roundabout on Friday, April 27. Inspired by the Three Sisters, the sculpture titled Three Rising by artist Ulrich Pakker of Seattle, Washington includes heavy gauge stainless steel and brushed stainless steel tubing with glowing LED lights.
“Using solar power and LED lights is, for me, groundbreaking and with the help of Elemental Energy, here in Bend, we made it work and it has all come together perfectly,” said Ulrich Pakker. “I am thrilled that the sculpture will be on such a main thoroughfare in Bend and perhaps Three Rising will become a new landmark in Bend.”
The sculpture by Ulrich Pakker was selected by the Art in Public Places Committee after a public input process in January 2017. Models by the three finalists were on display at the Deschutes Public Library and the Bend Senior Center last year.
“For public art, I believe Bend is leading the way in the region. The choice of artists, the location and placement of the sculptures and the ongoing additions funded by Art in Public Places made me really want to be a part of the Bend collection,” said Pakker. Soon after the installation in Bend, Pakker will be headed to Italy as he has been invited to show several sculptures at the 2018 Venice Biennale opening in late May.
Cristy Lanfri, member of Art in Public Places said, “We are honored to have this sculpture by Ulrich Pakker as part of the public art collection here in Bend, and we hope that our community will enjoy the visioning that Ulrich had for his beautiful piece, inspired by the beauty of the mountains around us.”
Visit Bend, an economic development organization to develop and build Bend’s tourism industry, created the Roundabout Art Route as a cultural tourism driver. The Roundabout Art Route is a self-guided, interpretive tour of Bend’s extraordinary collection of over 20 pieces of public art on display throughout the city.