Nothing says Oklahoma City quite like a sculpture made by New York artists.
“Light as a Feather” was recently installed at the northeast corner of Scissortail Park, located near Oklahoma City Boulevard and Robinson Avenue. The work by Jason Klimoski and Lesley Chang was commissioned by the city. Their studio is at the intersection of Washington Street and Front Street.
If that crossroads doesn’t sound familiar, it’s because it’s located in Brooklyn.
The piece is dedicated to Robbie Kienzle, whose dedication to the arts is largely responsible for transforming Oklahoma City through her pioneering 1% for the Arts program. Kienzle, who died last summer, is largely responsible for the visual arts landscape seen at virtually every corner of the city’s core. As of 2021, the city owned 215 pieces of public art, The Oklahoman reported. And much of that public art — including many of the gorgeous murals you see all over town — are made by Oklahomans. But not this one?
Illustrator Jerry Bennett took Mayor David Holt to task over that on Twitter and, as per usual, he gave a “not my circus, not my monkeys” style of reply. The silver lining is that the city government has reached out and invited him to participate in the process next time, so hopefully when “Stiff as a Board” is installed at the southwest corner of your local park, it’ll be designed by your neighbor.
