The city of Bozeman is a college town, with a large School of Art, hence scads of resident artists. This lead to a sincere dedication to the arts by the City of Bozeman, resulting in dozens and dozens of works on display throughout the city. Certainly the largest gathering of art works is at the Bozeman Public Library, the majority of the works located in an art park behind (south of) the library,
Bozeman Sculpture Park.
Winner of the 2021 Gallatin Art Crossing's
People's Choice Award, we're not sure whether it was the artistic ability and imagination displayed or the sheer size of
Raven the Messenger that led people to vote for it, as
Raven the Messenger is one BIG bird. Standing atop a 7 or 8 foot stepless ladder,
Raven the Messenger equals it in sixe, beak to tail feathers. Built up of layers of tire tread (certainly an imaginative example of repurposing),
Raven the Messenger is completed with the odd bit of steel to provide detail.
This is the second "Black Bird" sculpture by Joe Barrington that we've encountered in Bozeman. The first, entitled
The Trickster, is to be found at the Bozeman Public Library.
We suspect that, in truth, the two sculptures are actually Joe Barrington reliving some of his terrifying boyhood experiences of Raven attacks. Surrounding the
Emerson Center for the Arts & Culture one will encounter quite a few more art works, all well worth taking the time to pause and ponder over.
Joe Barrington
“My work is drawn from a lifetime of living, working, and experiencing the outdoors. Typically narrative in nature, my work evokes familiar memories. These experiences have found their way into my work throughout the entirety of my career. My grandfather brought the first arc welder to my rural part of Texas and I grew up with skilled craftsmen teaching the technique and processes now utilized in my artistic career.
With my sculpture I try to inspire fascination by making steel appear soft, light, or tactile. When utilizing other materials I apply the same ideas to encourage close looking and fascination. Recently I have been exploring new media with a particular interest in found and/or discarded materials. My work touches on social observations, and more recently man’s relationship and impact on the environment through both subject matter and material choice.”
From Gallatin Art Crossing
Inside Art Crossing
Mission Statement:
To place public art that enhances the cultural experience for Bozeman area residents and visitors to the Gallatin Valley.
Vision:
The Gallatin Art Crossing (G.A.C.) exhibit hosts a variety of artwork introducing viewers to many artistic approaches. The main focus of the organization is to select and place sculptures throughout the Bozeman area. All sculptures, unless noted on their plaque, are available for purchase during their tenure in the program An additional goal of the program is to add at least one piece to our permanent public collection each year. The community assists in this process by voting for their favorite sculptures online which helps the board select the People’s Choice Award winner. The winning piece, along with two to three other pieces are then voted on by the G.A.C. board for possible purchase and permanent placement.
From Gallatin Art Crossing