LITTLE ROCK – A new sculpture of civil rights pioneer Daisy Bates by artist Jane DeDecker is the newest addition to the renowned Vogel Schwartz River Market Sculpture Garden at Riverfront Park in downtown Little Rock.

The work is the latest of many pieces of public art generously donated by the nonprofit group Sculpture at the River Market and installed by the Little Rock Parks and Recreation development staff. The piece includes bronze a bust of Daisy Bates and a backing wall composed of natural blue stone that frames a picaresque view of the Arkansas River.

“I can think of no more fitting addition to the more than 90 artworks in the Vogel Schwartz Sculpture Garden than one honoring Daisy Bates, whose contributions to Little Rock through activism and journalism are still with us today,” said Dean Kumpuris, M.D., position 8 at-large member of the Little Rock Board of Directors and a longtime advocate for development of the city’s riverfront.

“The goal of the Parks and Recreation Department is to improve the quality of life for all residents and contributing to the beauty and enjoyment of Riverfront Park, especially by honoring someone who fought so hard to make Little Rock a city for everyone, is really a distinct privilege,” said Leland Couch, director of Little Rock Parks and Recreation.

Daisy Bates was a civil rights activist, publisher and journalist who played a pivotal role in the fight for civil rights in Little Rock, becoming president of the NAACP in Arkansas in the 1950s. She was a leading figure in integrating Central High School in 1957, including guiding and mentoring the Little Rock Nine from her 28^th Street home, now a National Historic Landmark.

Located in Riverfront Park on the banks of the Arkansas River, the Vogel Schwartz Sculpture Garden uses landscape architecture to create various outdoor "rooms" that house more than 90 artworks of sculptors in Arkansas and across the country.

###