''American Bison'', is a public sculpture by American wire sculptor William E. Arnold, located in

Indianapolis Indianapolis (), colloquially known as Indy, is the state capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Indiana and the seat of Marion County. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the consolidated population of Indianapolis and Marion ...

, Indiana within White River State Park. The sculpture is a life-sized male bison constructed of barbed wire, densely coiled and woven. The figure is facing north and stands on a rough limestone block base. It is located on the west end of the Washington Street Bridge at the entrance to the Indianapolis Zoo. It is 5'9" in height, 7'2" in length and 2'2" in width. The barbed wire bison with the limestone pedestal weighs 17 tons.

Description

''American Bison'' is a life-sized bison made of intertwining barbed wire that is painted brown. The bison is standing on a jagged limestone base, as if on a cliff ledge. A bronze label on the front of the base reads: THE AMERICAN BISON / SYMBOL OF INB FINANCIAL CORPORATION / WILLIAM E. ARNOLD / SCULPTOR / INB FINE ARTS COLLECTION / 1989

Information

''American Bison'' was originally created in 1989 and installed outside

Indiana National Bank INB Financial Corporation was an Indianapolis-based statewide bank holding company that was the largest Indiana-based financial institution at the time it was acquired by Michigan-based NBD Bancorp in 1992. Its primary subsidiary was the Indiana ...

(INB) in the 100 North block of Pennsylvania Street,

One Indiana Square Regions Tower, also known as One Indiana Square, is a 36-story building at 211 North Pennsylvania Street in downtown Indianapolis, Indiana, United States. It is used by various companies for offices. The building opened in 1970 as the headquarter ...

, in downtown Indianapolis. The sculpture served as

INB Financial Corporation INB Financial Corporation was an Indianapolis-based statewide bank holding company that was the largest Indiana-based financial institution at the time it was acquired by Michigan-based NBD Bancorp in 1992. Its primary subsidiary was the Indiana ...

's mascot. In 1993, the bison was relocated to the Indianapolis Zoo after Detroit-based

NBD Bancorp The National Bank of Detroit (NBD), later renamed NBD Bank, was a bank that operated mostly in the Midwestern United States. Following its merger with First National Bank of Chicago, the bank was ultimately acquired and merged into Bank One, at w ...

acquired Indiana National Bank.

Condition

The condition of ''American Bison'' was assessed in 1993 as part of the Indiana Save Outdoor Sculpture initiative to document public art. In 1993 the sculpture was considered to be well maintained. In 2009, the sculpture was still well maintained, with minor rusting of the metal and chipped paint revealing the metallic wire underneath. There is also staining on the base caused by runoff from the barbed wire.

Artist

William E. Arnold is from Wilkinson, IN. He has had a lifelong love of animals and by the age of 14 had taught himself taxidermy from library books. Arnold has a background as a float sculptor for the Indianapolis

500 Festival Parade Due to the longevity of the Indianapolis 500, numerous traditions surrounding the race have developed over the years. Traditions include procedures for the running of the race, scheduling, and pre-race and post-race festivities. For many fans, th ...

. In 1983 he began creating wreaths and baskets from grapevines, which he sold at wholesale to local flower shops. He began his work with barbed wire and fence wire when he saw rolls of wire laying in a field at a four-way stop. Arnold said, "I was on the way to pull vines and I saw rolls of wire lying in the pastures and thought it was a buffalo lying in the grass." In 1989 Arnold made Christmas decorations for the Indianapolis Museum of Art, including a 14-foot grapevine tree and 125 feet of grapevine garland. By 1993 Arnold had opened ''The Indiana Field Guide Park'' at his home in Wilkinson, IN. The two acre park included approximately 100 animal sculptures and over one thousand types of plants.

References

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