Dedicated on July 6, 2007, this beautiful eagle gateway sculpture was just one of a series of eagle sculptures in Libby done by sculptor Todd Berget. Today there are no less than 40 eagles scattered about Libby and area, all created by Berget and long time friend Darien Greason. A teacher at Libby Central School, in his spare time Berget creates steel eagles for his business,
Custom Iron Eagles of Libby. This magnificent eagle is about mid sized in the flock of 40, which range in size from 8 to 40 feet in wingspan. I'm guessing that none are more beautifully crafted than this one, though.
Supporting the eagle is the steel archway, also crafted of steel pipe, the cross piece long enough to span the three lanes of Mineral Avenue. Below the eagle in the centre of the arch are the words:
City of Eagles
A short Biography of Todd Berget and his business, Custom Iron Eagles follows.
Libby - City of Eagles
Artist Biography
THE ARTIST: Todd Berget
Artist Todd Berget lives in Libby, MT and works as a teacher at Libby Central School. In his free time he works on building metal sculptures for his business, Custom Iron Eagles. Todd started his career as an artist in college and over 100 of his murals can be found in Spokane, WA and throughout Butte, Dillon, and Libby, MT. In 1997, Todd and long-time friend Darien Greason combined efforts and created the first 40-foot eagle ("Soaring Eagle") which was purchased with highway grant money. In the summer of 1998, they created the second eagle, "Swooping Eagle", which was sold to a business in Glacier National Park and later relocated to Red Lake, Minnesota.
Since then, Todd has placed over 40 of his sculptures (ranging in size from 8 to 40-feet in wingspan) around the Libby community and in surrounding areas. None of the eagles were purchased with city funds! All were purchased by private individuals, businesses, and grant money. In 2007, Libby was officially nick-named the "City of Eagles." Todd believes the best way to increase tourism and change the outlook of a community is through the talent of a variety of artists. Students of his at Libby Central School have worked since the opening of the school to donate projects and paint murals around the community.
From Custom Eagles
Custom Iron Eagles is a small business located in Libby, MT. It was started back in 1997 by artist Todd Berget. Custom Iron Eagles specializes in metal eagle sculptures ranging in various sizes and made specially to fit to the customer's specifications.
Bald eagles have stainless steel heads and tails. The body is made of mild steel and allowed to rust to a nice reddish earth tone patina.
The weight of the eagles starts at 150 lbs. for eight foot wingspans and up to 5000 lbs for forty foot wingspans. Lifetime of the sculpture is over 150 years.
From Custom Iron Eagles