Over the weekend of Aug. 10 to 12, The Loveland High Plains Arts Council sponsored the 24th Annual SCULPTURE IN THE PARK exhibition in Benson Sculpture Gardens in Loveland, Colorado.
This largest outdoor juried exhibition of three-dimensional artwork in the United States, Sculpture in the Park, this year, featured the work of 200 outstanding sculptors from around the world.
The show has grown significantly since 1984 when a group of five local visionary Loveland sculptors joined with city representatives, the Chamber of Commerce and a few interested citizens and fostered the idea of a sculpture show in Benson Park.
They foresaw the creation of a unique environment for artists from across the country to showcase their work and as a way to generate funding for a city sculpture garden. Initially 50 local artists participated. 2,000 People attended and purchased $50,000 worth of sculpture.
Sales totaled over $1 million in 2006. Proceeds from each year's exhibition go towards the purchase of permanent sculpture for Benson Sculpture Garden as well as the funding of park improvements and landscaping. To date, 116 remarkable sculpture pieces, worth over $3.6 million, grace the park grounds.
Among this group of distinguished artists is Parker resident,
Victoria Parsons, who was accepted for the third time (2004, 2005 and 2007). Victoria' passion for wildlife art blossomed once she arrived in the Denver area in 1989.
Her naturalistic style is often enhanced by the use of unique materials. She uses 1500-year-old bristlecone pine, found in the Colorado mountains as high as 12,000 feet. She also utilizes burl woods from Carpathian elm, cherry and rose myrtle which yield one-of-a-kind pieces due to shape, age and rarity.
Her centerpiece for this years show was "Ammonite," created from clay and cast in bronze. (See photograph) Ammonites are an extinct group of spiral-shelled marine animals from which the octopus, squid and cuttlefish are thought to have descended.
As a diverse sculptor, Victoria also sculpts in clay and casts in bronze using unique patinas to enhance each piece. Italian, Utah and Colorado alabasters also highlight a body of unique wildlife art intended to capture her subject's inner spirit.
Her work can be found in galleries and private collections throughout the United States and she welcomes commission piece opportunities upon request.
Victoria has won numerous regional awards in Colorado and across the country. She was awarded first place at The 2000 Ward World Championship Competition in Ocean City, Maryland for interpretive sculpture with Aerial Pursuit.
She has twice been juried into the prestigious Leigh Yawkey Woodson Art Museum's Birds in Art Exhibition; Wausau, Wisconsin for Life on the Edge and for her bronze, Nesting Pair in 2006. In 2004, Victoria was selected as an associate member of the Society of Animal Artists (SAA) and her myrtle burl sculpture Sea Treasure was selected for the museum tour and once again she was juried into the 2006 museum tour opening with her bronze sculpture, Courtship.
During 2005 she was accepted as a signature member into the Worldwide Nature Artists Group (WNAG) who make up a body of artists dedicated to the celebration and preservation of the natural world.
Reading this impressive list of credentials doesn't quite make up for actually seeing Victoria's work first hand, nor does it convey her enthusiasm and generous spirit. She is active in the local art community and has worked with The Wildlife Experience Museum staff to develop exhibits and to reach out to local artists.
Recently Victoria was the judge in the final selection of the 66 works of art by members of the Parker Artists Guild now on display (August 4 to September 30) at The Wildlife Experience Museum, on the corner of Lincoln and Peoria, Parker. More information about Victoria and her work can be seen at
www.natureartists.com/victoria_parsons.aspx.
To read about Sculpture in the Park go to their website
www.sculptureinthepark.org.
And don't forget to mark your calendar for August 8, 9 & 10, next year.
In concert with and across the street from Sculpture in the Park, the annual Loveland Sculpture Invitational Show and Sale(16th Anniversary this year) offers visitors an amazing selection of quality sculptures. 275 Artists were exhibiting their wares in 8 huge tents.
Show proceeds benefit art education in the Thompson Valley School District and several privately run schools in the area. Many local school artists display their work in the 'Emerging Artist' tent.