Kennewick to commission public art

Visitors entering Kennewick from the south on Highway 395 will be greeted by three large pieces of public art starting next spring.

The Kennewick City Council on Tuesday voted 5-2 to commission three sculptures from Oregon artist C.J. Rench to be placed in the center of three new roundabouts in the Southridge area by next May.

The idea for the sculptures sprang from on effort to save money on maintenance, said Terry Walsh, the city's director of employee and community relations. Keeping the center islands of traffic circles clear of weeds costs money.

The city contacted the Kennewick Arts Commission to "see if we could spend that money on art instead," Walsh said.

The arts commission searched nationwide for a suitable artist and found one close to home -- Rench is a graduate of Richland High School and now lives in Hood River, Ore.

The sculptures will cost a total of $45,000, said arts commissioner Linda Moran. Since they sit on concrete pads that require next to no maintenance, the city will save money in the long run, she said.

The sculptures are colorful abstractions of the windblown desert hills around it -- two large figures flying a kite, 22-foot-tall wildflowers bending in the wind and circular shapes resembling the Horse Heaven Hills behind them.

They were a bit too abstract for councilman Bob Parks. He said they would be better suited to sit next to the Seattle public library than the Tri-Cities.

"If we always play it safe we never make people smile, never do anything that's playful," Moran said. "People are more progressive than we give them credit for."

Councilman Paul Parish said he is not a big fan of abstract art in general. "But I think this is great," Parish said. "Thank you, good job."

Bob Parks and Don Britain voted against proposal.

To see computer renderings of the sculptures, go to tricityherald.com.

This story was originally published June 22, 2011 at 12:00 AM with the headline "Kennewick to commission public art ."