Click to view the unveiling ceremony of the new public art installation on Tangerine Road.
This Thursday, the Town of Marana formally debuted the “Deer at Tangerine Sky Park” art installation. The small ceremony to unveil the five metal sculptures was the culmination of a two-year project.
The sculptures are made of solid steel and feature a family of foraging deer. They are located on Tangerine Road and are part of the Tangerine Corridor Project and will serve as a centerpiece of the upcoming Tangerine Sky Park.
“This project is absolutely beautiful,” said Marana Mayor Ed Honea. “The design is beautiful; the construction is beautiful. It is something we should all be very proud of."
Town of Marana Assistant to the Town Manager Tony Hunter coordinated the project, which was funded by the Transportation Art by Youth fund through the Pima Association of Governments.
This project began with the brainstorm of "how can we get public art in the community, but also how can we get youth involved as well?’” said Hunter.
The Town enlisted the help of Marana High School welding students, who have previously created other metal art pieces for Marana. Once the students were on board, the idea was to get the community on board to help with the search for an artist.
Hunter worked closely with the Marana Citizens’ Forum, who created a Public Art Committee to help come up with project.
“They were a huge help with the project,” said Hunter, who explained the artist selection process with the sub-committee. The parameters were simple. The work had to be metal to accommodate the students' skill set, and it had to represent the Marana community.
Trevor O’Tool's submitted proposal for the deer design was ultimately selected due to how he connected his work to Marana's natural environment.
“It represented our natural environment, but also represented family and our history,” Hunter said.
“It shows how the Town and artists and young people can work together to make something that our Town can be proud of for many years to come,” Honea added.
Installation of the deer was made possible due to the Town of Marana project management team and the Tangerine Corridor Constructors. It was no easy feat to put the deer in place. Not only did they have to be placed in the alignment the artist envisioned, but the sculptures are not easy to move. The sculptures are steel and weigh several hundred pounds. The buck statue weighs over 750 pounds and had to be placed with a forklift.
They also had to be painted to protect the metal from the elements and the landscaping needed to be completed by the project management team and the contractors.
The Deer at Tangerine Sky Park art installation is located on the Southside of Tangerine Road, East of Camino de Oeste.
Marana High School Welding Students: Austin Bott, John Campbell, Randall Chambliss, Cameron Daily, Mikaila Rodriguez, Brandon Shulls, Scott Washington. Kenton Webb – Instructor.
Marana Citizen’ Forum Public Art Committee: Ron Hill, Angela Wagner-Gabbard, Don Duncan, Valerie Pullara, Michael Smentek.
