Commissioned by the Astor Neighborhood Association and the City of Green Bay, Wisconsin for the Fox River Trail in the city's Life of the River sculpture program.
families enjoying public art
The three-part sculpture celebrates the significant watercraft of Green Bay and the Fox River: The Ho-Chunk (Winnebago) canoes which were likely the first watercraft to cruise the Fox, the long Voyageurs used by French Explorers in the first European forays into the Green Bay area, and the massive lake freighters that ferry corn and coal up and down the Fox still to this day. Each craft was studied and a simplified version was designed that would reference each type while at the same time allow for participation. All three sculptures feature seating for picnics, active fantasy, or both.
The sculptures were fabricated in Ohio at the Miami University Sculpture studios, shipped to Wisconsin, and then installed on site. The team responsible for the big job included Miami students Nicholas Masso, Mark Reedy, George Dallas Owens. Michael Haddy installed on site and also created the drawings, blueprints, and templates.
