Perry’s agricultural heritage will be represented by an antique plow share in the public artwork “Furrowed Fields,” set to be dedicated Saturday, Nov. 10 in downtown Perry.
Des Moines artists Jim Russell and his son, Matt Russell, were in Perry this week, preparing the concrete footings that will support the steel structure. Jim Russell said they will return Nov. 6 to place the king-sized plow share and again Nov. 10 for the dedication ceremony.
“The share will point westward, and the pointy end will be in the ground,” Jim Russell told ThePerryNews.com Wednesday, so the art will not pose a risk to pedestrians or motorists.
The sculpture will be dedicated during the ninth annual Art on the Prarie festival, which is “an arts festival which showcases over 100 Iowa artists, musicians, and poets in 10 buildings in the Downtown Cultural & Historic District of Perry, IA,” according to the event’s literature.
“Furrowed Fields,” a tribute to the men and women connected to agriculture and its impact on Perry’s history, will take its place alongside similar public artworks that celebrate the area’s history of manufacturing, railroading and philanthropy.
The dedication and lighting ceremony for “Furrowed Fields” will by held at 5:30 p.m. at Second Street and Willis Avenue. The event is free and open to the public.
