Bethany’s Sculpture Park reveals to visitors a cross-section of how contemporary artists work outdoors, and how outdoor art enters into complex dialogues with sites and environmental conditions. This is accomplished with a three-tiered program of a Bethany collection, loans, and site-specific commissions. The exhibition of modern and contemporary outdoor sculpture can be enjoyed by all ages. Members of the public are welcome to view our sculptures during business hours.

Artists with sculptures currently on exhibit include Mosaic Installation with The Chicago Mosaic School, Fitzhugh Karol (Field’s Jax I and Field’s Jax II), Jack Howard-Potter (Larm), David Lyons (Headspace) and Anonymous (Education).

Mosaic Installation

This installation was created during a five-day workshop with The Chicago Mosaic School.    Students took part in creating and installing a community mosaic in large scale and installed on the outside wall of Bethany’s performance space.  This was a hands-on workshop where students learned the skills/techniques for creating a sustainable large-scale outdoor mosaic using direct method.  The piece was designed by artists of The Chicago Mosaic School.

The Chicago Mosaic School website CLICK HERE

The Chicago Mosaic School (CMS) was founded in early 2005 by artist Karen Ami, and it quickly became the premier center of education for Mosaic Arts in the United States. Before shifting her focus toward mosaics in her practice, Karen had a long career as a working artist in painting and ceramics, earning her BFA from the Boston Museum School and MFA from the School of the Art Institute of the Chicago. In 1993, she took an interest in mosaics and found there were few resources in the United States for artists interested in a serious study of the medium. After several years of independent research and practice, she sought formal instruction in Italy. She connected with established and trained mosaic artists from around the world and invited them to come to Chicago to educate a new generation of students in the United States. With her background as a ceramicist and formulation in traditional mosaic technique,  Ami was inspired by her love of mosaics to establish a hub for learning in Chicago, where expertise of ancient methodology and application could mingle with a contemporary perspective and aesthetic experimentation. 

Artist, Jack Howard-Potter
Larm

Motivated by his study of human anatomy and movement, Jack Howard-Potter works with steel to create large-scale figurative sculptures. His work has been on display throughout the world in outdoor sculpture parks, galleries and public art exhibitions.

Artists website and full bio CLICK HERE

Artist’s Statement

I try to capture movement in a medium that does not move. Using steel which is an inherently rigid material I work to convey a sense of fluid action in space. My work explores the wide range of movement of the human figure informed through my study of drawing the human anatomy. My sculptures seek to convey the motion of the body in extremely stressful and beautiful positions; the moment that a dancer is at the peak of a jump, the weightless split second before a body succumbs to gravity. I am describing an ephemeral action in steel to convey this moment for eternity. I want the viewer to visualize the actions that led up to a given pose and the actions that will follow it. Using the brightly colored surfaces separates the figures from the landscape, making them stand out in much the same way people do when they wear clothes. The brilliant colors serve as protection for the steel from the corrosive outdoor environment as well as adding excitement to the steel to aid in the sense of movement. The work explores the range of possibilities and flexibility of the material as well as the subject matter. The display of my work in the outdoor public arena is the perfect place for the inherent academic roots to be brought to every person in an easily recognizable and accessible way, bridging the gap between the intimidating gallery or fine art institution and the general public.

Artist, Anonymous
Education

 Affectionately referred to as “chainman”, this sculpture simultaneously evokes the leisurely confidence of a young man surveying his surroundings at a park, a detached observer of the world around him, or, to those who come across him from the back or side, something darker. Are the chains which depict hair (dreadlocks?) and shape the body meant to be literal? Are his hands physically bound but his mind the key to freedom? Are the chains a literal reference to slavery and servitude, or our own self-doubt, and the lock a reference to the power of education to create a path to freedom?

With no description from the artist, each viewer is left to their own interpretation.

In contrast to the movement of Jack Howard-Potter’s Larm, the sculptor captures the body at rest; not rigid, not tense, supported equally by the tree upon which it leans as by its own two legs.