Longtime Colleagues Barb Makela and (former CoC President) Lynn Ohlhorst enjoyed a beautiful Fall day attending the pandemic-delayed dedication ceremony for Janey Westin’s latest sculpture: “The Bear & Bunny Bench”. Before a good-sized crowd, Janey was introduced and talked about her process for creating the sculpture:
THE INITIAL IDEA:
Candidates for the commission were asked for whimsical designs to honor the memory of Linda Brandt - longtime, and very active member of The Friends of the Edina Library.
MODEL:
Janey created a 3-D clay model of the design: 2 inches of model = one foot of the sculpture!
STONE:
Materials consisted of one 5002 lb. block of Indiana limestone, and two additional pieces, weighing 673 and 600 lbs. Janey started the piece while teaching a letter carving class at The Indiana Limestone Symposium. She had to remove more than 1000 lbs. from the large block before shipping it from Indiana to her studio in Edina.
SCULPTING:
The process lasted two years. Nearby neighbors watched her carving while the big stone was in her driveway. The sculpture includes 11 carved books; 6 of which have the names of Minnesota children’s book authors. *Note: The Bear is reading “Peter Rabbit” and the Rabbit is reading “Three Bears”.
The Bear & Bunny Bench is outside, near the library entrance. It is accessible to all, so when you stop by for a selfie, leave a note in the “knot hole”.
Edina Community Library is located at 5280 Grandview Square, Edina 55436.
- Barb Makela
