12-foot-tall oak leaf sculpture in works for Manchester University Mall

Email sent to students, faculty and staff on April 4, 2017:

Friends

If you’ve been to the north end of the Mall, you may have noticed a circle of grass missing near Cordier. No, we don’t have our version of a crop circle going on. Instead, we are preparing to install a new sculpture on campus. A giant, bronze oak leaf.

Artist Mark Krucke is originally from Ohio and now lives in Florida. His work has included large oak leaf sculptures located in various places, mostly in the southeastern United States, but including the White River State Park in Indianapolis. You can see his work at http://www.sculptormark.com/  His “Fortitude” series is what caught our attention.

The first piece Mark is creating for us will be made of bronze and stand 12’ tall. Attached is Mark’s illustration showing the sculpture, which will be installed vertically. We are preparing the space for installation in early summer. Additional pieces will follow over the next year.

The entire project is funded by a generous gift from Patricia Schaffer. Pat is a lifelong supporter of the arts. She holds undergraduate and graduate degrees in music and a master’s in library science. Pat lives in Muncie, Ind., where she served as director of the Muncie Public Library from 1959 to 1986.

At our end, many thanks are due to Thelma Rohrer, Pieter Naragon, Dave Good, Melanie Harmon, Anne Gregory, Dan Chudzinski and many others who are preparing for the installation and celebration. We will share more details soon.

Dave

Dave McFadden
President
Manchester University

About Manchester University
Manchester University, with campuses in North Manchester and Fort Wayne, Ind., offers more than 60 areas of academic study to 1,600 students in undergraduate programs, a Master of Athletic Training, a Master of Pharmacogenomics and a four-year professional Doctor of Pharmacy.  Learn more about the private, northern Indiana school at www.manchester.edu

April 2017