SCULPTORS VISIT "BONEYARD"
Three sculptors visited Mezger Enterprises “boneyard” near Lampasas, Texas, Thursday, June 2, 2005, to choose pieces of limestone for the sculptures they will create for Art in the Park this fall. Art in the Park is a volunteer, non-profit group working to establish a free public sculpture garden in Hanna Springs Park, Lampasas, Texas. The sculpture garden is slated to open in October 2005, after a two-week demonstration by the artists.
Nancy Gray, project director of Art in the Park, and Ben Goodwin, an owner of Mezger Enterprises, led artists Carolann Haggard, David B. Hickman, and T.J. Mabrey through a lot scattered with limestone blocks and rocks, keystones, bits of pediments, paving stones, and grooved slabs. The site on this blistering hot day was reminiscent of ruins of Ancient Greece. The boneyard is where odds and ends and extra pieces of stone go when a building project is finished.
The artists were looking for pieces of stone that would not need a lot of “roughing out.” In other words, they would not have to remove a lot of excess stone before starting to carve their sculptures. Haggard found large blocks of stone that could serve as a couch and a chair. One of the blocks had a brain-coral like texture to its sides that she found interesting. Hickman wants to create a stone portal with a cross bar and moving element on top. He selected two long pieces of limestone for the sides of the portal. Mabrey was looking for paving stones or pavers to go around four larger-than-life subjects to be placed on pedestals. She was also looking for rocks that could be carved into pedestals for a larger-than-life wildflower, tree, cactus, and vine. She ended up picking out two large square pillar-like rocks and said she’d need a third. Nancy Gray chose six limestone cubes that will be used for seating in Hanna Springs Park.
Mezger Enterprises will deliver the limestone to Hanna Springs Park. Limestone can be heavy, however, so special equipment will be needed to move the limestone from the truck to the grounds of the park. For example, one of the pieces that David Hickman chose weighs close to 8,000 lbs.
Mezger Enterprises Ltd. has generously offered to donate the limestone for Art in the Park. The company has been in Lampasas since 1983.