Budding Billiken artists now have expanded study opportunities.
SLU Law School alum Henry Lay donated a sculpture park to SLU upon his death in December 2000. Lay, who purchased the land in 1996, had said that he enjoyed seeing art and nature together.
“We hope to use the park as effectively as possible while also keeping with Mr. Lay’s wishes,” said MacLennan Gallery and P?re Marquette Gallery curator Nanette Boileau.
“Eventually we’re hoping to have an area for children where they could play on the sculptures and things like that in addition to using it as an area for students,” Boileau said.
The Henry Lay Sculpture Park, located in Louisiana, Mo. (an hour and a half away), currently has six sculptures with three more expected to arrive this summer.
“There’s a wide variety of art there now,” Boileau said.
Fine Arts Department Chair Cynthia Stollhans, Ph.D., also agreed that the variety in pieces is an asset.
“For example, one of the pieces there now is a large plow made of all natural wood placed in a grassy field while another is a large bronze of three Chinese women,” she said.
Stollhans said that there are a lot of possibilities for the area.
“There are a lot of ideas being thrown around right now,” Stollhans said.
“We’re talking about doing exhibits, not only for SLU students and faculty, but Louisiana, Mo. locals as well,” she said.
The site is also being discussed as an educational place for SLU students.
Stollhans said that they’re talking about having weekend workshops or summer projects there for art students, but that the biology department has been using it for several years now.
“If we were going to use it for educational purposes, there would probably have to be some renovations done for studio work,” Stollhans said.
The property, which is more than 350 acres, now has a dormitory, educational center and a house along with the sculpture park.
“It would be a great place for outdoor assignments,” Stollhans said. “Hardly any of the area has been cleared. There are nature trails and lots of wooded area.”
Boileau said that there will be a studio tour this Saturday, although the official opening for the park is not scheduled until May 2002.
