New sculpture to be dedicated at DWU
MITCHELL – The committee members of Dakota Wesleyan’s Class of 1970 and other alumni supporters are pleased to announce the dedication of a new sculpture at the entrance of the School of Business, Innovation and Leadership. The dedication ceremony will be held at the statue on Thursday, Sept. 29, at 2 p.m. as part of Blue and White Days. Light refreshments will follow.
Entitled “Power of Possibility,” the blue resin statue was created by Joan Benefiel of Brooklyn-based Figuration Studio. The sculpture honors the Women of Wesleyan from past to present and encourages the university’s women into the future.
With South Dakota artist laureate Dale Lamphere as a consultant, the search committee selected Benefiel based upon her innovative use of translucent resin in public art projects. She, along with her partner and husband Jeremy Leichman, collaborate on design and execution of projects for the public realm from their studio locations in Brooklyn and Salina, Kan. Their installations can be seen in all parts of the country and include sculptures in Colorado, California, Missouri, North Carolina and New York.
Benefiel works with the high-tech resin material, “an aspect that [her] public art is known for.” This will be the first resin sculpture in the state and is cast in a translucent blue color to add to the university’s landscape and culture.
