Children’s Museum Hosts World Famous Artist

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Children’s Museum Hosts World Famous Artist

April 15, 2017

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Patrick Dougherty, known worldwide as the creator of ‘Stickwork,’ has selected the Children’s Museum of South Dakota as the location for his next masterpiece. The exhibit will be created at the Museum on May 1-18.

“We’ve been planning this for years and are incredibly excited to host this unique type of art,” Children’s Museum of South Dakota’s Executive Director Kate Treiber said. “It will be amazing to watch our community volunteers work alongside Patrick Dougherty to bring this dynamic sculpture to life.”

A student of art history and sculpture, Dougherty combines his carpentry skills with his love of nature. His creations, made entirely out of sticks, are each unique to the location he selects. The more than 250 monumental scale environmental works he has created span the globe, from Scotland to Japan to Brussels, and all over the United States.

The Museum, in partnership with the city’s newly formed Public Arts Commission, is using this new art exhibit as a means to support public art initiatives and the impact such works can have on a community.

“There’s no doubt this sculpture will draw guests to our area,” Treiber said. “We expect this piece to bring joy and playful discovery to people of all ages who come and interact with it.”

As it is made entirely of material that decomposes, the stick work is expected to exist 2-3 years. “As time allows us to interact with the piece and our seasons gently wear on it, the sculpture will offer us a sense of appreciation, reminding us that it won’t last forever,” Treiber said.

Additionally, the Museum is offering a unique opportunity to meet and work side by side with the artist in the creative process. Any person age 14+ interested in making a mark on this community project is urged to learn more and sign up at www.prairieplay.org.

Dougherty has received numerous awards, including the 2011 Factor Prize for Southern Art, North Carolina Artist Fellowship Award, Pollock-Krasner Foundation Grant, Henry Moore Foundation Fellowship, Japan-US Creative Arts Fellowship, and National Endowment for the Arts Fellowship.

Patrick Dougherty’s stick structure has come and gone