Against the Wind – “Metal”-ing in Art
14-12-2021
Those who have never visited the city may not realize what an important role art has always played in the history of Toledo, Ohio and the surrounding areas.
The famous Toledo Art Museum first opened in 1912, for example, and is visited by countless people every year. The University of Toledo has art events and exhibitions on a regular basis. The list goes on and on.
Recently, Yarder Manufacturing had the unique opportunity to contribute to that rich history in nearby Perrysburg. They assisted in the creation of a new public art sculpture that has already been installed at Riverside Park. The collaboration with Downtown Perrysburg, Inc. (otherwise known as DPI) was an important one, and it was truly an experience that won’t soon be forgotten.
Yarder and DPI: The Perfect Pairing
The project itself began back in January of 2020 when the Perrysburg Convention and Visitors Bureau awarded DPI sponsorship funds for upcoming community summer events. Of course, that plan quickly changed just a few short months later when the still-ongoing COVID-19 pandemic began to make its way across the world. Suddenly, in-person events of any kind were essentially impossible for the foreseeable future as people struggled with how to deal with the virus.
Yet despite this, Downtown Perrysburg, Inc. still wanted to use that money in a way that would support and empower the local community – and they turned to the team at Yarder (among others) to help.
In association with a variety of organizations including Graphite Design + Build, Riker Products, Sharp Finishing and the community of Perrysburg itself, everyone got to work on creating something truly memorable. Soon, a public art sculpture was born. It features an airplane design that is a clever reference to the wide range of “birds in flight” that inhabit Riverside Park. It also has a modern pop art twist, all to embrace the contemporary park that Riverside has become in recent years.
One of the most interesting elements of the art sculpture is the color design. The scheme was carefully thought out to resemble a sunrise in sun set as the colors of each piece take on a slightly different appearance based on what time of day it is. Each powder coated steel airplane weighs nearly 300 pounds and they’ve all been strategically positioned to represent 12 aircraft that are landing in the park before taking flight once again.
All told, it was an incredible opportunity for Yarder to give back to Perrysburg and the surrounding areas. The public art sculpture does not yet have a name, but DPI has indicated that they will solicit suggestions from the community on their various social media channels like Facebook and Instagram using the hashtag #DPIinFlight.
To find out more information about Yarder’s recent collaboration with the city of Perrysburg on this wonderful public art sculpture, or to get answers to any other important questions you may have, please don’t hesitate to contact us today.
