"Equinox sculpture on the rise
Several artists work together to create monument for Loveland's entry
Most art created in Loveland can be viewed casually, but not Equinox. It will sit near the northeast corner of Interstate 25 and U.S. 34 acting as an iconic beacon for Loveland's art. The piece is designed to be seen at 75 miles per hour. It is potentially the largest and heaviest single sculpture ever created in Colorado.
When a request for bids was released, Doug Erion looked at the objectives for the piece, which included Loveland history and the town's spirit. Size mattered because of its location near two major highways.
Erion and Jack Kreutzer teamed up to create the concept, and they first thought of horses. After many preliminary drawings and as Equinox started to take shape, they realized it couldn't be just about horses.
Loveland founder David Barnes named the town for the president of the Colorado Central Railroad, and it was this railroad that gave the town its start in 1877. A railroad track became a major element. By bending the track to reflect the mountains, the horses were placed on top as though galloping toward the west and the city of Loveland.
Of note, a particular style was used for the horses. It came from deep within the area's history, namely the Southern Cheyenne and Arapaho ledger books that represent a visual record of their struggle against their loss of their land. Hundreds of these ledger pages survive and include excellent images.
Large silhouettes of horses and a railroad track were not enough. The piece also had to include symbols of Loveland history, and this is where the talents of Jack Kreutzer came into play.
The adornments take the form of heavy, flat stainless steel pieces plus one cast piece — a mobius heart (a ribbon twisted once that produces a single continuous surface).
Elijah Nugent shows one of the many decorative stainless steel pieces. This one has the general outline of a sugar beet, Loveland's largest industry for half a century. The interior represents a circuit board reflecting Loveland's electronic industry. (photograph caption--Kenneth Jessen / For the Reporter-Herald)
Doug Rutledge was essential to the project. After the artistic aspects and concept for Equinox were solidified, it was time to turn art into reality. Detailed engineering drawings were created showing how hundreds of pieces fit together. The design had to withstand wind loading of 90 miles per hour or better and one with a massive supporting structure. It also had to be maintenance free for decades to come.
This project is unique among Loveland's long art history. Up to this point, most of Loveland's monument-size sculptures were cast from bronze or carved from stone. This work of art is fabricated.
Each horse, for example, will have an armature of welded 6-inch and 4-inch square steel tubes. They are 24 feet long and stand 12 feet high and when finished, will come in at 1 ton.
Mounted to the armatures, silhouettes give the horses detail and were created from plasma-cut pieces made of quarter-inch steel plates.
The railroad track will be constructed of 6-inch steel tubing bent into waves. With ties of half-inch steel plate, the track is about 100 feet long.
The decorative stainless steel symbols of various sizes and shapes were cut with a water jet. They will be bolted to the horses using spacers to give this a three-dimensional look.
All of Equinox will be supported well above the ground on structural steel tubes to ensure visibility.
Equinox will be built as subassemblies and these will be bolted together on site. The subassemblies are being fabricated by Beatty Construction Services, and Hoff Construction will pour the foundation. Colorado Water Jet Co. cut the stainless steel and LPR Construction will erect the piece onsite. Quality Lining and Coating Co. and Art Castings were both involved." By Kenneth Jessen (from (
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There is a video of the installation at (
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There is really no safe parking to photograph this piece, so you may shoot a 'drive-by' photo to log a visit.