"Tall Grass" by Asia Ward. Photo courtesy of Oz Art NWA
Oz Art NWA has wrapped up installing six pieces of public art at Osage Park, which quietly opened in May, off of Southwest 16th Street in Bentonville.
How it happened: Oz Art is working to create a dynamic public art scene, curator Chad Alligood told Axios. Alligood wanted to choose pieces from a diverse group of artists and images “that activate something in the viewer,” he says.
Osage Park is a collaboration between Oz, the city of Bentonville and the Peel Compton Foundation. Public art was always part of the plan, Alligood says.
Déjà Vu by Chakaia Booker. Photo courtesy of Oz Art NWA
Details: Each work of art is related to one of three themes.
Nature: Tall Grass by Asia Ward and Garden Boats by Jennifer Torres
Aviation: Launch Intention by Griffin Loop and Flight by Bob Doster
Osage Park’s evolution from an unused wetland: Déjá Vu by Chakaia Booker and Fluttering Quilts by Greely Myatt
What they’re saying: "I wanted to make something that made me feel like I was a wetland creature looking up through the water at the tall grass," Ward says of her sculpture.
1 weekend thing: A free event to celebrate the new park, A Day at Osage Park, will take place 10am – 4pm on Saturday. Expect live music, art walks, wetland tours and food trucks.