• Home
  • About Chambanamoms.com
    • Press/Awards
    • Meet the Chambanamoms.com Staff
    • Write For Us
  • Advertise
  • FAQ
  • Contact

ChambanaMoms.com

The Top Online Resource for Champaign-Urbana Area Families

  • New to C-U?
  • In Season
    • Fall
    • Winter
    • Spring
    • Summer
  • [ Event Calendar ]
    • Submit an Event
  • Eat + Drink
    • Favorite Foods Around C-U
    • Kids Eat Free
    • Restaurant Openings & Closings
    • Farmer’s Markets
  • News
  • Need to Know
    • Birthday Parties
    • Health & Wellness
    • Kids Classes & Teams
    • Schools
    • Things to Do This Month
    • Travel Beyond C-U
    • Your Family’s Health
  • Weekend Planner
    • Get the Planner
Chambanamoms.com is the top online resource for families in the Champaign-Urbana area.
Learn More | Advertise
You are here: Home / Things To Do in CU / Activities / Best Kept Secret: Kid-Approved Sculptures in Champaign-Urbana

Best Kept Secret: Kid-Approved Sculptures in Champaign-Urbana

April 13, 2015 By From The Editors

By Emily Harrington

Stanchion Hazel Park
The Stanchion sculpture in Hazel Park. A Champaign-Urbana kid favorite! Photo Credit: Emily Harrington.

“Cheeeeese, cheeeeeeeeeeese, cheeeeeeeeeeeeese!” OK, so everyone likes cheese, but, my son loves cheese. So, you can imagine his delight when just after we hit Bradley Avenue while traveling north on Neil Street a giant wedge of cheese appears outside of the passenger window. But, it’s not cheese at all—it’s art!?

Art is subjective—there’s no doubt. While my husband sees an axe chopping cinder blocks, my son and I see cheese. There are many “what’s that?” type moments sporadically planted throughout Champaign–Urbana in the form of sculptures. It wasn’t until I started researching this article that I realized just how many sculptures there are in C–U. A LOT.

A sculpture is a work of art made out of virtually any material. This genre differs from statues because they tend to be more abstract, while a statue is mainly of people and/or animals. This is my attempt at categorizing the sometime uncategorizable.

Stop and look at the artwork that enhances C–U’s landscape. Here’s our Pinterest board with pictures of some sculptures and their locations  to guide you.

Champaign

  • What? Painted steel “Flamenco Revisited” abstract
    Where? South side of Porter Park on the corner of Windsor and Rising Road
  • What? Painted steel “New Holland Yellow Dinosaur” abstract
    Where? South side of Hessel Park on West Kirby Avenue
  • What? Painted steel “Fettle” abstract
    Where? Hill by Champaign Telephone Company on South Neil Street
  • What? “Counter Rhythm” abstract
    Where? Kuhn & Co. window on East Main Street
  • What? Metal “Sunder Planet” sphere
    Where? Parking lot in front of Orpheum Children’s Science Museum on North Neil Street
  • What? Metal “Stride” beast
    Where? Parking lot in front of Orpheum Children’s Science Museum on North Neil Street
  • What? Painted metal utensils/tools
    Where? Prosperity Gardens on North Neil Street
  • What? Painted mild steel/industrial enamel “Stanchion” abstract
    Where? East side of Hazel Park on North Neil Street
  • What? Metal “Double Dutch – A Jump for Joy” abstract
    Where? East side of West Side Park
  • What? Forged iron “Tootsie” abstract
    Where? West side of West Side Park
  • What? Stainless Steel “Pipe Trapped Apparitions” abstract
    Where? Park Street near Randolph Street
  • What? Aluminum/steel/LEDs/electronics “Glory Pipes 2.0” pipes
    Where? Roundabout at Main and Chestnut Streets
  • What? Bronze/glass light globe/acrylic paint “Chester the Jester” jester light
    Where? Corner of University Avenue and Market Street
  • What? Painted metal lion
    Where? The Lodge on Hill apartments at the corner of Randolph and Hill

Urbana

  • What? Aluminum “Water” angelfish
    Where? Crystal Lake Park Family Aquatic Center entrance on North Broadway Avenue
  • What? Aluminum/plastic/electronics/audio “Stranger Reduction Zone” street sign
    Where? The Urbana Free Library Green Street entrance
  • What? Limestone “Slow and Steady” animals and books
    Where? The Urbana Free Library Green Street entrance
  • What? Limestone “Arcas” bear
    Where? The Pines on the corner of Philo and Windsor Roads
  • What? Limestone “Decisions” animal
    Where? Carle Park on West Indiana Avenue
  • What? Limestone “Fly Fishing” frog
    Where? Anita Purves Nature Center on North Broadway Avenue
  • What? Limestone “El–Arairah” rabbit
    Where? Wandell Sculpture Garden at Meadowbrook Park on South Race Street
  • What? Painted steel “Minimal Response III” hammers
    Where? Wandell Sculpture Garden at Meadowbrook Park on East Windsor Road
  • What? Painted aluminum “Father and Sons” kids and adults
    Where? Wandell Sculpture Garden at Meadowbrook Park on East Windsor Road
  • What? Painted steel “From Night Daddy’s Book of Dreams” animal/person
    Where? Wandell Sculpture Garden at Meadowbrook Park on East Windsor Road
  • What? Wood “Folk Art” poles with faces
    Where? Wandell Sculpture Garden at Meadowbrook Park on East Windsor Road
  • What? Stainless steel “Molecular Reflection” abstract
    Where? Wandell Sculpture Garden at Meadowbrook Park on East Windsor Road
  • What? Industrial plastic/rubber “Athirst” whales
    Where? Corner of Race and Griggs Streets
  • What? Metal spiral fountain
    Where? Next to the Urbana City Building on South Vine Street
  • What? Stainless steel/epoxied mosaic “Asteray” abstract
    Where? Near the Corner of Green and Cedar Streets
  • What? Painted metal bike racks
    Where? In front of Champaign Cycle in Urbana on South Race Street

If you are simply out running errands, or want to make a day of it, take some moments to admire the larger–than–life artwork that exists throughout our community. Add to your checklist the statues to admire, too.

What did we miss? Tell us what public artwork you admire in the community in the comments below.

Emily Harrington is a Chambana townie that left her 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. job to be a 24/7 mom to a dreamy son. Still interested in writing, Emily uses some of naptime to practice her passion and keep her mind right. Emily is a happy wife with a happy life because she fell for a fellow townie. Oh, and let’s not forget her other son, a degenerate canine named Heppenheimer.

 

Filed Under: Activities, Things To Do in CU Tagged With: art, champaign, Emily Harrington, kids art, Sculptiure for kids, Sculpture, urbana

Get the Chambanamoms.com Weekend Planner (It’s Free!)

Enter your email address to receive email updates. We respect your email privacy.


Copyright © 2023 | Terms of Use | Disclaimer | Disclosure | Privacy Policy | Comment Policy | Contact