Did you know that there are over 100 pieces of public art in Cape Girardeau? And that 85 of those pieces are located downtown? Our community is full of art in many ways, shapes and forms and it thrives off of the many talents that the local artists bring. In fact, come April 4th, two local artists will each have sculptures in the city's first ever Outdoor Sculpture Exhibit: On Broadway.

Before we go further, however, let's rewind time a bit. Two years ago, a group of community members from the City of Cape Girardeau, Arts Council of Southeast Missouri, Old Town Cape, and the Cape Girardeau Area Chamber of Commerce came together to form the Public Art Committee. This group worked to develop a public art policy to give framework and guidelines on how public art would be managed. Following City Council approval of the policy, the effort to host an outdoor exhibition began. Pretty cool, huh?

In August of last year, the committee released a prospectus to invited artists with the hope that the project would increase the number of arts-related activities within the region and provide an additional revitalization strategy for Old Town Cape. Proposals for consideration from the artists were due in October and the jurying process culminated in mid-November. The exhibit was juried by Tom Stancliffe, Professor of Art at the University of Northern Iowa, who has exceptional experience in creating sculptures, jurying exhibitions, and assisting communities in arts development strategies.

The two sculptures I mentioned earlier along with five others will be unveiled at a special reception kick-off event at 6 p.m. on April 4 at the Vasterling Suites Courtyard (Broadway & Fountain) and you're invited! Remarks will be given by Stancliffe and committee members and appetizers will be provided by Port Cape Girardeau. Following the reception, I encourage you to walk Broadway to view the pieces that will be in place for one year - you won't be disappointed!

The pieces are as follows:

'Splintering' by Beth Nybeck (Kansas City, MO)

'Quill' by Dan Perry (Waterloo, IA)

'Natures Quintet' by Stephanie Sailer (Swisher, IA)

'Lineage' by Ben Pierce (Cape Girardeau, MO)

'Victoria' by Chris Wubbena (Cape Girardeau, MO)

'Home Spun' by Andy Arvantes (Chicago, IL)

'Immigrants' by Mike Baue (West Chicago, IL)

For more information on the exhibit, visit the Cape Girardeau Outdoor Sculpture Exhibit website or Facebook page. I'll see you on the 4th!