Free Event Brings Over 50 Sculptors and 800 Sculptures to Little Rock

LITTLE ROCK (April 19, 2016) — Little Rock residents and visitors alike will have the opportunity to see and purchase works by leading sculptors when the ninth Sculpture at the River Market Invitational Show and Sale takes place from April 22 to 24. 

Over 800 sculptures will be on display in the River Market pavilions and in the adjacent area of Riverfront Park on those three days in April. The works featured will include all types of media, style, subject matter, and size.

Sculpture at the River Market will feature the works of over 50 sculptors.

The 2016 sculptors include: Lorri Acott, Lori Arnold, Terry & Maritza Bean, Hunter Brown, Craig Campbell, Kathleen Caricof, Tim Cherry, Leslie Daly, Darrell Davis, Jane DeDecker, John Deering, Clay Enoch, Kimber Fiebiger, Peter Grimord, Guilloume, Denny Haskew, Bob Heintzelman, Mark Hyde, Greg Johnson, James Keller, Kevin Kresse, Mark Leichliter, Harold Linke, Allison Luedtke, and Bryan Winfred Massey, Sr.

Other participating sculptors are: James G. Moore, Nnamdi Okonkwo, Steven Olszewski, Richard Pankratz, Nathan Pierce, Merle Randolph, Dale Roark, Kevin Robb, Timothy Roundy, Emelene Russell, Wayne Salge, Valerie Jean Schafer, Adam Schultz, Stephen Shachtman, Kim Shaklee, Stephanie & Scott Shangraw, Gene Sparling, Lawrence Starck, Charles Strain, Tod Switch, Michael Warrick, C.T. Whitehouse, Longhua XU, and Michelle Zorich & Katherine Martin.

Sculpture at the River Market will be open in the River Market pavilions from 9 a.m. until 5 p.m. Saturday, April 23, and from 10 a.m. until 4 p.m. Sunday, April 24.  In addition to the opportunity to view the sculptures and meet with the sculptors, there are a variety of activities planned throughout the two days.

Docent led tours of the Vogel Schwartz Sculpture Garden will be available at 2 p.m. Saturday, April 23 and Sunday, April 24.  Andina’s Café & Coffee Roastery will be set up at the sculpture show on Sunday beginning at 9:30 a.m.  From 11 a.m. until 2 p.m. Sunday, Southern Salt and Southern Gourmasian food trucks will be set up at the River Market.

On Friday, April 22, at 6:30 p.m., a Preview Party will kick off the weekend.  With food provided by Copper Grill, beverages provided by Glazer’s and Stella Artois, frozen treats by Le Pops, and live jazz music, it will be a festive atmosphere offering guests the first chance to purchase sculptures as well as visit with the sculptors.  Also that night, guests to the Preview Party will be able to vote for their favorite sculpture in the 2016 Public Monument Competition.

Tickets to the preview party are $100 a person and can be purchased at the event website:http://sculptureattherivermarket.com/.

Of the artists in the 2016 Show & Sale, 28 artists submitted a proposal for the Public Monument Competition.  The proposals of the seven semifinalists will be displayed during the event’s Preview Party on the evening of April 22, and Preview Party guests will vote for their 1st, 2nd and 3rd choice.  At 9 p.m. all votes will be tallied and the top three finalists will be announced at the end of the evening.

The top three proposals will be juried on April 23 and 24, and the 2016 winner will be announced at 3 p.m. Sunday, April 24.

The semifinalists are: Craig Campbell, Kathleen Caricof, Clay Enoch, Denny Haskew, Kevin Kresse, Kevin Robb and Stephen Shachtman. The commissioned sculpture will be placed on the grounds of Little Rock Central High School in 2017, in commemoration of the 60th anniversary of the integration of that historic high school.

Previous Public Monument Competition winners have been:

• 2011 - Chapel for The Center installed in Riverfront Park
• 2012 – Bryan Massey for Nautilus installed in Riverfront Park
• 2013 – Ted Schaal for Open Window installed in Riverfront Park
• 2014 – Lorri Acott for Peace installed at 2nd Street and Main Street
• 2015 – Michael Warrick for Mockingbird Tree which will be installed this week at Chenal Parkway and Chenal Valley Drive

More information is available on the web at http://sculptureattherivermarket.com/.

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