Lake Oswego arts council looking for early pictures of old George Rogers Park sculpture

The earliest piece purchased into the city of Lake Oswego’s public art collection is deteriorating and the Arts Council of Lake Oswego wants the community’s help in assessing potential restoration efforts.

The Lake Oswego Lions Club commissioned “Fairy Tree” by John Erwin Uppinghouse in 1964 and the sculpture has served as an art piece and play structure in George Rogers Park ever since.

The piece suffers from “serious structural deterioration,” and the city of Lake Oswego is mulling whether to restore it, according to public art and collection manager Norah Crean .

The arts council is in need of early photographs that could help the city better understand the method and process Uppinghouse used to create “Fairy Tree,” and asks the community to submit any photographs they may have of the sculpture, especially ones taken before 2000.

“The community cares about this piece. Old letters in records express people’s concern and interest in making sure this piece continues to live on. We want to do our best to make sure the piece is cared for in an appropriate way,” Crean said.

To submit photographs of the piece, email norah@artscouncillo.org.

“The work we have been doing so far is preliminary work, which is assessing materials and trying to understand the method and process the artist used to create the piece,” Crean said. “That’s where any photos that citizens might have of the artwork in its early stages or even in this stage would be helpful because it would help us understand the way the piece was created and we could have a better grasp on the way it is deteriorating and the reason the materials are reacting in specific ways.”