Ukrainian artist's work to be purchased for Niwot Sculpture Park

The Niwot Sculpture Park at 79th Street and Niwot Road is a temporary home to numerous sculptures on loan from local, regional, and international artists. One of those sculptures will soon be on permanent display.

Through a competitive process, artists submit applications to the Sculpture Park Committee, which selects art to exhibit for at least 12 months. These pieces are for sale in the sculpture garden, with prices marked on small plaques near the sculptures. Currently, one piece has been purchased by a designated donation from the Burrell Family Foundation, and another piece was donated by the late artist's family.

Even though the majority of pieces exhibited are on loan, it has always been the goal of the Sculpture Park Committee, under the umbrella of the Niwot Cultural Arts Association (NCAA), to promote the pieces for sale to benefit the artists while adding to the cultural beauty of Niwot.

Anne Postle, Lisa Rivard and Jill Whitener currently serve on the committee, and were considering a public contest to select one of the sculptures for purchase, along with a fundraising campaign to cover the cost, when Russian troops invaded Ukraine.

Knowing that one of the sculptures under consideration was the work of a Ukrainian artist, Postle reached out to the artist's agent to inquire about a potential purchase as a gesture of support. She was able to reach the New York-based agent by phone, discovering that at that very moment, the agent was in a vehicle with the artist and the artist's brother, attempting to escape to safety.

The committee quickly resolved to delay the contest for a year and instead recommend an immediate fundraising effort to purchase the Ukrainian artist's work, hoping that the effort would jumpstart an annual public art purchase program. The NCAA board of directors quickly approved the recommendation, and within hours, over $2,000 had been raised towards the $25,000 purchase price.

The sculpture, Kore That Awakening, was sculpted by artist Egor Zigura in his Ukrainian studio and has been at the Niwot park since February 2020. This piece was the first international sculpture submission the committee received.

The sculpture will be the third permanent fixture in the park. Raising funds to purchase this piece will not only provide Niwot with an important piece of art, but it will also aid a Ukrainian artist fleeing his country amid the current unrest.

Zigura was born in Dnipropetrovsk, Ukraine and was living and working in Kyiv. Later reports indicate that he and his brother and his agent have been able to leave Ukraine and are safe outside the country. Details concerning the fate of his studio are unknown. Zigura has a graduate degree from the Ukrainian National Academy of Fine Arts and Architecture and is a member of the Union of Artists of Ukraine. Zigura's stated goal is to explore the legacy of classical antiquity.

His sculptures combine canonical forms with contemporary notions highlighting the issue of identity in the multicultural world, consumerism, ecological challenges, and other problems of the global society. He works with both traditional and contemporary materials including bronze, metal and polyester.

His works have won acclaim on the international level, being represented at international auctions and being featured in art fairs worldwide. Zigura's artworks can be found in private collections in Denmark, Australia, New Zealand, France, Monaco, Portugal, the UK, Singapore, USA, Japan, China and Italy.

Fundraising to purchase the sculpture will be highlighted at First Friday Art Walk, scheduled to restart on Friday, April 1st. The NCAA hopes to raise the $25,000 needed to purchase the work. Several hundred dollars have been contributed since the fundraising effort was first publicized on social media. Donations, which are tax deductible to the fullest extent of the law, will be taken at locations around Niwot. Online donations can be made at http://www.niwotarts.com and should be designated for "Awakening."

Osmosis Gallery will be giving 10% of sale proceeds on the April First Friday towards the purchase of the sculpture. The Niwot Community Semi-Marching Free Grange Band will present a Concert for Ukraine in the Niwot Sculpture Park at 6:30 p.m. on April 1, including the National Anthem of Ukraine, and Pictures at an Exhibition, which includes the well-known "The Great Gates of Kiev," popularized by Emerson, Lake & Palmer. Other selections include "Get Back" and "I'm Still Standing."

Additional fundraising opportunities for the piece will be highlighted in upcoming weeks. For more information about the park, visit http://www.niwot.com/sculpture.