Zoie Clift
I had a chance to catch local artist Alice Guffey Millerunveil her sculpture pARTty for Peg at the Historic Arkansas Museum this
weekend. If you find yourself near there sometime, be sure to swing by and check out
this new addition to the art scene.
The whimsical sculpture features a fiddler (named Arkansassy by the
artist) and eight dancers
(7.5 feet tall and all made of aluminum from Arkansas based SeaArk
Boats) in the midst of a square dance.
The figures are located outside the south entrance of the museum. It really is
an amazing sight to see and instantly spreads a smile across the face. Or at
least it did mine.
The sculpture was made in honor of Peg Smith, the late
commissioner and long time supporter of
the local arts and the museum.
An interesting feature of the sculpture is that each figure is anchored to
pedestals embedded with objects from each of the state’s 75 counties.
Each object tells a story of a town, community or person in the state.
commissioner and long time supporter of
the local arts and the museum.
An interesting feature of the sculpture is that each figure is anchored to
pedestals embedded with objects from each of the state’s 75 counties.
Each object tells a story of a town, community or person in the state.
Thesculpture was unveiled during the museum’s annual Territorial Fair and on site were fiddlers, the Arkansas
Country Dance Society, and dedications by First Lady Ginger Beebe, Little Rock
Mayor Mark Stodola, the artist and many others associated with the project and
the museum. For more details on the sculpture and it’s story, click here. A
cool feature is that each object embedded in the figures can be searched for
and identified via the site. Click here to find out more. One of my favorite
details of the scene are the aluminum birds surveying the dancers from the
top of the museum building. Just look up and you’ll see them calmly perched
and completing the imaginative atmosphere the overall sculpture radiates.
