Pulley sculptures cross community

Midwestern artist Robert Pulley has collaborated with the Greater Lafayette Museum Of Art for a “Greater Lafayette Sculpture Walk” featuring sculptures in seven locations.

The two-mile walk starts at the West Lafayette City Hall and will take you downtown to the art museum with such stops as Tapawingo Park, the Tippecanoe County Courthouse and Lafayette City Hall.

Pulley’s large ceramic sculptures, which he describes as having references to weathering, growth and the human figure, blend in well with the natural surroundings.

“Through clay I search for my place in a vast, mysterious, interconnected and sacred nature displayed in forms of plant, animal, geological and unnameable spirit,” Pulley said as a part of an artist statement.

In order, the sculptures are named “Ascending, Cascade, Twister, Enfolding, Memory of a wave, Composition with Slope, Marker, and Cloud Over Mountain” and are part of Pulley's work in a 20-year time frame.

Pulley has a doctorate degree in sculpture from Ball State University and has dedicated most of his career to sculpture.

Looking at a work completed in 1988, Pulley says it’s like “seeing an old friend.”

The pieces are glazed then fired, and they sometimes include other materials, like copper, put into the clay after the first firing. The pieces, which resemble rock formations in many ways, range in color and texture.

“Trees and grass come and go, but stone is one of the most ancient materials that we encounter. There’s no particular story that goes with each piece. They’re part of the flow of work,” Pulley said.

The Art Museum of Greater Lafayette also hosts Heather Vicker’s exhibit. Vicker, who completed her doctorate degree in art education from Purdue, and has over 22 years of teaching experience, primarily does charcoal and acrylic drawings of horses.

"I decided to draw horses because horses just made me very happy," Vickers said.

The sculptures across town outside and the exhibit of Pulley's and Vickers' work inside the museum will be available for public viewing until Sept. 8.