I applaud the recent decision of the Mankato City Council to re-install the sculpture that is referred to as “The Piece” by Dale Eldred, an internationally acclaimed artist. It is a significant work of art.

One of the problems that emerges with this singular piece of artwork is that people either like it or not. That is to say, they are polarized by their simple psychological response to it. I would like to make a suggestion that would change the Riverside Park to the Riverside Park and Sculpture Garden. This would alleviate the problem of having just this one piece as a focal point.

I envision the park with numerous pieces of outdoor sculpture that would further humanize the space and create a vibrant oasis of artwork that relates in a variety of ways to the people who visit the park. In that regard there would be a wide array of sculptural concepts and artistic philosophies represented. This would change the focus placed upon a single piece and transform the park into a sculpture garden of wide ranging artistic directions, and it would place the park on the list of things to see and do in Mankato.

This could be done without any cost to the city. Grants could be pursued for a sculpture workshop that would end in the production of a piece dedicated to the city. Businesses and individuals could commission works that were approved by an art selection committee that has an overview of how all of the pieces would be integrated into the park.

The art faculty at Minnesota State University could sponsor a sculpture competition with its advanced art students. Perhaps one or two or more proposals might be selected for inclusion in the park. Patrons would be sought within the community for materials and/or fabrication of the chosen work and also donations from others to pay for the cost. Plaques would give due recognition to the patrons. This paper could have a feature article explaining this concept while soliciting donations from any interested patrons at any level.

The selection process committee would include art faculty, the mayor’s office, community leaders in the arts and others as deemed appropriate. The norm for this is generally a committee of seven individuals who have a positive attitude toward having art in public places. That odd number creates a tie breaker on any votes. It also reduces political friction that larger committees seem to create as they become too un-wieldy.

Student artists would be enrolled in a special topics course while they are creating their work. For this, they would be given upper division credit toward graduation. Students would donate their artwork to the city — this donation might even have some tax implications for the students, but that’s not the goal.

This would allow a student artist an opportunity to create a large-scale piece he/she otherwise would be unable to do.

There may be professional artists in the area who would like to donate pieces to the park, simply because they like the concept. Such donations would need to be screened by the art committee for acceptance into the park.

There could be an unveiling of each new piece — every Memorial Day for years as a spring ritual — to celebrate the park and its art. This would encourage park goers to make donations which would create monies for the maintenance of the artwork. That money would be held in escrow specifically for that purpose.

The first unveiling could occur this upcoming Memorial Day, with Eldred’s piece serving as a catalyst for future unveilings.

It is my belief such a program would create a sense of community pride as it integrates the college, the artists and Mankato residents into a positive and cohesive cultural voice.

In order for this to work, it would need the support of all of the aforementioned groups above. It is not hard to do — all we need is to have a commitment to the cultural welfare of our town. I know that I still do.



Keith Appel is a producing artist who makes large architectural sculptures and murals. The former chairman of the art department at the University of Anchorage in Alaska, he is now retired. Appel grew up in Mankato where he was a student — kindergarten through graduate school at Minnesota State University.