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Lewes parks commission to vote on wind sculpture June 19

June 14, 2017

Lewes residents know the importance of offshore winds and their impact on daily lives. The University of Delaware has created clean energy with its wind turbine, as it prepares the next generation of earth, ocean and environmental scientists. Art in Bloom, a committee of Lewes in Bloom, proposes to install a wind-driven Lyman Whitaker sculpture titled “Oval Twister” in Otis P. Smith Park (aka the Rotary pavilion barbecue park across the canal bridge), located on Savannah Road.

The proposal was reviewed and approved by the Public Art Application Review Ad Hoc Committee, appointed by Mayor Ted Becker and chaired by Lewes resident Ed Zygmonski, at their June 7 meeting. The Lewes Parks and Recreation Commission will review the plan at 7 p.m., Monday, June 19.

The 18-foot-tall sculpture, which spins on sealed ball bearings, is handmade of industrial-grade copper and marine-grade stainless steel. The effect of salt air to the copper will cause the sculpture to develop a weathered patina. Whitaker’s sculptures are built to last for generations. Even a small amount of wind can set the sculpture in motion, so in Lewes, it surely will be in motion most of the time.

Known variously as wind sculptures or kinetic art, Whitaker’s works have a natural theme. His goal with each piece is to “inspire a stronger bond between mankind and Mother Earth.” Internationally recognized, Whitaker’s sculptures are located throughout the world at venues including the Missouri Botanical Garden, the Morris Arboretum in Philadelphia, the Hill-Stead Museum of French Impressionism, and numerous hospitals and hospices in the United States, as well as private collections in North America, Europe and Australia.

Information on membership and support for Art in Bloom and Lewes in Bloom can be found at www.lewesinbloom.org or Facebook.

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