Art Class Octopus Sculpture on Display

Students in the Introduction to the Visual Arts class constructed the octopus sculpture currently on display on the quad near the library and Kirk Memorial, titled "The Quad Kraken."

The course allows non-art majors to explore the arts through different historical periods and themed activities. Danielle Yakle, assistant professor of art, guided the students through the construction process. To create the form of the sculpture, the class welded a steel armature and covered it in concrete using a method that allows the structures to stay hollow. Then the students cut, ground and arranged a glass mosaic on its surface. The head is the largest part of the sculpture, measuring at about 5 feet wide, 6 feet long and 3 and a half feet tall. Each part of the tentacles that touches the ground has a metal bracket through which 12-inch-long stakes are secured.

The class chose the form of an octopus in order to construct something fanciful and imaginative that students will pass by every day. They hope to increase each viewer’s attentiveness to campus and inspire positivity.