What better way to start off this
blog than with some Iowa State Cyclone Pride?
Journeying through the art on campus I found that sometimes we can make connections
to art in the most unlikely spaces. Intercollegiate
Athletics: Founded in Education is a work of art that is passed by Iowa
State students, alumni and friends in the Fall Semester on every game day. Right in front of Jack Trice Stadium stands
these five stationary lights that represent the tie between athletes and education.
Each
pillar has four flat sides with different metal cutout images. Three of the panels depict student athletes in
action partaking in athletic activities, such as swimming, basketball,
football, volleyball, and baseball. The
fourth panel shows a student performing an academic assignment, working in a
lab, or playing an instrument. The base of these light panels is molded
terracotta made to look like shelves filled with academic books.
After I had decided that I was going to write about this
installation, a few of my friends and I drove past Jack Trice at night and saw
the different impact it had. At night,
these panels were lit up from the inside, showing the athletes “glowing with
knowledge.” Its funny how I never really noticed them before, but there they
were.
Jack Trice Stadium is a monument for the students of Iowa
State. It represents our Cyclone pride.
It’s only fitting that this work of art be placed where so many great
athletes come to play. So, next time you
go to Jack Trice Stadium to support our Cyclones I hope you’ll take a look at
these sculptures and when you do let me know what you think?
By Dorothee Nygren
