‘A city of the arts.’ Olympia launches 15th sculpture contest to showcase public art

Olympia’s Percival Plinth Project sculpture competition, launching Saturday, July 12, with a reception, puts public art to a public vote.

This year’s competition, the 15th, features 17 sculptures arrayed along Percival Landing from Isthmus Park to the Port of Olympia. Many depict animals ranging from a salmon to a dog, several are abstract, two include the moon, and two (both by Deon Duncan) show human swimmers.

“This is an opportunity for the public to participate in the decision,” said Stephanie Johnson of the city’s Parks, Arts and Recreation Department.

A jury — including the past year’s winner, a member of the Olympia Arts Commission and a community member — chooses the sculptures to be featured each year. “Then the power is transferred to the people to make the final recommendation,” Johnson said.

The sculptures will be on their plinths (square blocks serving as a bases) until next summer, but voting is open only through July 31. The city purchases the winning sculpture each year, displaying it in front of City Hall for a year and then finding it a home in a park or a city building.

The project has added more than 14 pieces to the city’s public art collection. Olympia’s Parking and Business Improvement Area Board bought Don Freas’s Ring Dance No. 2: Core,” installed at Fourth Avenue and Franklin Street. “Dignity in Labor,” by John Vanek, stands outside the Olympia Labor Temple at 119½ Capitol Way N.

“Part of the beauty of the plinth project is that after the public has voted, the pieces are for sale,” Johnson said. “So we’ve been able to keep more of the pieces that we’ve had on exhibition.”

The new crop of sculptures, selected from among 26 entries by 20 artists from Washington and Oregon, were installed during the third week of June, and Johnson and her colleagues are already hearing lots of public comments. “There’s definitely always a buzz,” she said.

The plinth project is just one of the city’s public art efforts; others include the Traffic Box Wraps, also chosen by popular vote, and the Gateway Art Crossings that mark significant entrances to the city.

The city also designates 1% of the cost of its major construction projects for public art. The new trail at Grass Lake Nature Park, for instance, features Abe Singer’s “Recomposing,” which repurposed an old water tank on the property into two sculptures and a bird blind decorated with flowers and a spiral.

There is also a plethora of private efforts, including murals on private buildings and sculptures funded by public-service organizations and purchased by developers and other businesses.

One notable example: “Buttons,” which covers the Washington State Employees Credit Union garage at 330 Union Ave. SE. The 42-foot-high installation, made with chain-link fencing and injection-molded vinyl pucks, is the work of Christian Moeller, a German-born artist who chairs the Department of Design Media Arts at University of California at Los Angeles.

“He is an internationally known artist with a piece in Olympia,” Johnson said. “We really have a range of art … from pieces by emerging artists and outsider artists to this piece by an internationally recognized artist.

“People I’ve talked with are starting to feel like they live in a city of the arts,” she said. “We really do live in a city infused with art. It’s a beautiful thing.”

Percival Plinth Project

• What: Olympia’s 15th annual Percival Plinth Project public sculpture competition features 17 pieces by local and regional artists.
• When: Online voting is open through July 31. The sculptures will be up until next summer.
• Where: Along Percival Landing, Olympia
• More information: http://olympiawa.gov/plinth
• Opening reception: Meet some of the artists and get a sweet treat from 4 to 6 p.m. Saturday, July 12, along Percival Landing.