Middletown >> When artist Karen Turcotte moved from San Francisco to Lake County, she found herself without any place to display her large sculptures. So she created one.
With the help of the Lake County Arts Council and the Lake County Public Services Department, Turcotte created EcoArts of Lake County and the annual sculpture walk, located at Trailside Park in Middletown. This year’s walk opened Sunday morning. For the next five months, visitors can view the 25 sculptures scattered along a trail in the park from dawn until dusk each day. Admission is free of charge.
Turcotte was offered three different locations for the sculpture walk, and picked the Middletown location out of convenience; she lives in Cobb. Though the park was run down and in need of some love, the addition of the walk had an immensely positive impact on the area. “Luckily because the sculpture walk went in, there’s been a lot more attention given to that park. It’s a crown jewel in the park system now,” Turcotte said. “But that’s not strictly because of EcoArts,” she added. “Whatever you pay attention to gets better and suddenly we were paying attention to the park.”
In the summer of 2003, Turcotte put on the first EcoArts sculpture walk. Over that past 13 years, over 300 sculptures have appeared in the walk. As the name suggests, Turcotte required that each piece possess an “environmental sensitivity” either in material or message.
“I think it’s always important to raise awareness for the environment and your place in it,” Turcotte said. “Being inspired by the Bay Area activism, I brought that sensibility to Lake County. As soon as it was put out there it was immediately embraced.”
In 2013, Turcotte decided she wanted to take a step back from EcoArts and focus on her own artwork. She turned to local artist Lisa Kaplan to take up the reins. “I had experience with nonprofit work so she trusted me that I would take care of her baby,” Kaplan said.
Kaplan and Turcotte share a similar attitude toward eco-conscious artwork and bringing to light environmental issues. “It’s so relevant to our lives and it’s so relevant to the lives of the children who are coming after us,” Kaplan said. “If we don’t have a place to live, then what do we have? If we can’t grow up healthy, what do we have? I think that that’s the real impetus for environmentalism.”
For Kaplan’s first summer with EcoArts, she and Turcotte worked together to organize the walk. Then in 2014, Kaplan brought on a board of people to assist. The group wades through applications submitted by artists who want to display their pieces. Criteria include, “aesthetic merit,” materials used, size, intent and how the piece will be anchored. EcoArts prohibits burrowing into trees to anchor sculptures. “If a hole is dug, the soil is set aside to be filled at the end of the season,” Turcotte added. “We try to make a zero footprint.”
From the beginning, Turcotte accepted most artists who submitted a piece. “I always regarded this project as a quote, unquote dialogue with nature,” Turcotte said. “As long as that theme were in the work there was a good chance it would be accepted, if the work was good.”
Kaplan and the board approach the applications much in the same way. “Usually we take most of the people who apply because we’re a community organization and we want to be receptive to people who want to participate,” she said.
Demonstrating their commitment to community, EcoArts encourages schools and organizations to submit pieces, and also waves the application fee. This year’s walk features work from People Services, the Lake County International Charter School and a local senior center. “We actually have the opportunity for kids to display among professional artists. It’s always fun to see the imagination of the kids and what they’re up to,” Turcotte said. “Not only is it for the professionals but we really do want to represent community.”
As the EcoArts sculpture walk gains notoriety, the group will likely become increasingly selective. “It’s a probability we will be a little more judicious in the future because we’re growing,” said Kaplan. “We want it to be relevant in terms of both the message and the aesthetic. We’re looking to have a quality world class art show.”
Every summer the artwork improves as artists return and attempt to outdo themselves. “As people keep making stronger work each year the quality of the show is getting better and better,” Kaplan said.
The high quality show is especially impressive considering EcoArts is run entirely by volunteers.
It may seem as though running a free of charge art show would be difficult to pull off financially, Turcotte said funding isn’t the difficult part. While it doesn’t cost much to organize the walk, one thing organizers must have is a great deal of perseverance. “It’s more tenacity and blood, sweat and tears than really money,” Turcotte said. “I think being tenacious is the number one attribute that one would have to have to do this project.”
The EcoArts board members appear to have tenacity in spades, if numbers are anything to go by. According to Turcotte, the walk has been very successful, attracting more than 3,000 visitors each year. People in surrounding areas have heard about EcoArts and even call Turcotte to inquire about the logistics of the walk.
For this reason, the local government has been assisting EcoArts with their endeavor. “Lake County is being very supportive. They help us with our guides because we are a tourist attraction and we want to be even more of a tourist attraction,” Kaplan said.
The appeal of the walk is likely due to its unique concept. Visitors drive up to the park, get out of their cars, pick up a guide and walk to every one of the 25 sculptures. This is unlike many other sculpture tours, which are difficult to view entirely by foot. People can come any time between dawn and dusk, as the walk is self-guided. “In that respect is it completely unique,” Turcotte said. “It’s out in the middle of 107 acres in a county park just waiting for you to come and enjoy … It is out there vulnerable and waiting for anybody who wants to come and take advantage of it.”
The walk allows for “contemplation, reflection and mediation on nature and the natural world around us,” Kaplan said.
Aside from the obvious perks for local artists, who have another space to show and sell their work, the sculpture walk benefits the community at large. “It’s fun, it’s inspiring and it makes people happy because … there’s a smattering of art in their lives every time they walk on the trail,” Kaplan said. “We all know that one of the things that keep communities healthy, thriving and sustainable is art … By having art and culture centers and events and happenings, we’re lifting our lives.”
With the EcoArts sculpture walk, the new Middletown Art Center, poetry readings and live music, the town has much of what it needs to become a cultural destination. “Middletown is just becoming this fabulous hub of creativity and culture … We’re really doing what we can, those of us who are residents here, to invigorate and enrich our lives here and share it,” Kaplan said.
And yet, many people are unaware of all the creative opportunities that lay just outside their doors. “It’s puzzling that people still don’t know about this wonderful cultural and artistic aesthetic pleasure that we have right here in Lake County,” Kaplan said.
But with Kaplan at the helm of EcoArts, this is likely to change sooner rather than later. “I’m on a mission so that Lake County gets on the map as a place where you can see great art,” she said. “We hope everybody comes and enjoys [the sculpture walk].”
Jennifer Gruenke can be reached at 900-2019.
