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Jim Dolan (born 1948) is an American sculptor specializing in outdoor larger-than-life bronze and steel sculptures, especially of Montana-related subjects and wildlife. He has created a number of large scale multiple element sculptures, and over 170 works of public art. He currently lives in Belgrade, Montana. He has created works in steel, copper and brass. Dolan grew up near Livermore, California, and came from a ranching background. He first came to Montana in 1966, moving from California to attend
Montana State University Montana State University (MSU) is a Public university, public land-grant university, land-grant research university in Bozeman, Montana. It is the state's largest university. MSU offers baccalaureate degrees in 60 fields, master's degrees in 6 ...
, where he graduated in 1970 and ultimately obtained a master's degree in agriculture. He took a welding class at the college and that was when he began to create metal sculptures, starting with nails and other small bits of metal. He petitioned the college to be granted in-state tuition, arguing that he intended to live in Montana permanently and be an asset to the state. Over the course of his career, he has donated four sculptures to Montana State University, and '' Bleu Horses'', which he built over 15 months and with his own money, is dedicated to the people of Montana. His work at MSU includes a statue of Walt Whitman placed near Wilson Hall, the campus's liberal arts building, and near the
Museum of the Rockies Museum of the Rockies is a museum in Bozeman, Montana. Originally affiliated with Montana State University in Bozeman, and now also, the Smithsonian Institution, the museum is largely known for its paleontological collections. The Museum houses ...
is "Rusty," a draft horse. However, a significant number of his public art sculptures are installed in the eastern United States. Dolan's career as a full-time artist took off after he finished a commission in 1979 to place a flock of geese inside the terminal of Bozeman Yellowstone International Airport. His most recent large-scale installation is ''Bleu Horses'', a set of 39 horse sculptures made primarily of steel and permanently installed on a hillside off highway 287 just north of Three Forks, Montana. Dolan has created other complex outdoor sculptures in Montana, including a herd of elk placed upon the lawn of a bank in
Bozeman Bozeman is a city and the county seat of Gallatin County, Montana, United States. Located in southwest Montana, the 2020 census put Bozeman's population at 53,293, making it the fourth-largest city in Montana. It is the principal city of th ...
, and a
fly fisherman Fly fishing is an angling method that uses a light-weight lure—called an artificial fly—to catch fish. The fly is cast using a fly rod, reel, and specialized weighted line. The light weight requires casting techniques significantly diffe ...
sculpture in
Ennis Ennis () is the county town of County Clare, in the mid-west of Ireland. The town lies on the River Fergus, north of where the river widens and enters the Shannon Estuary. Ennis is the largest town in County Clare, with a population of 25,27 ...
. A whimsical work, ''Albert Einstein Between Theorems'', was a 2012
ArtPrize ArtPrize is an art competition and festival in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Anyone over the age of 18 can display their art, and any space within the three-square-mile ArtPrize district can be a venue. There are typically over 160 venues such as museu ...
entry, and is now permanently installed at Western Michigan University. A sculpture of a golden eagle, with a wingspan, is in Osaka, Japan. His work often contains whimsical elements, such as a
Frisbee A frisbee (pronounced ), also called a flying disc or simply a disc, is a gliding toy or sporting item that is generally made of injection-molded plastic and roughly in diameter with a pronounced lip. It is used recreationally and competitive ...
-throwing statue of Albert Einstein, said to be "taking a moment for lighthearted joy amidst his important work," or one of the ''Bleu Horses'' which is "pooping"—evidenced by a small pile of round stones placed on the ground beneath the animal's raised tail. A statue in Bozeman of Malcolm Story, a descendant of Montana pioneer Nelson Story, incorporates the distinctive waxed mustache and plaid coat worn by the eccentric gentleman in his later years.


Selected works

File:Bozeman airport - 2013-07-01-2 (9185219765).jpg, Flock of Geese in Bozeman Yellowstone International Airport terminal File:Jim Dolan Sculpture Montana under stormy sky (5862106919).jpg, Montana under stormy sky, Airport Road, near Belgrade, Montana File:Malcolm Story statue - Bozeman Montana - 2013-07-09 (9376692593).jpg, Malcolm Story, 1995, Bozeman, Montana. File:Albert Einstein Between Theorems - Jim Dolan (8023354865).jpg, ''Albert Einstein: Between Theorems'', now permanently installed at Western Michigan University


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Dolan, Jim Artists from Montana 20th-century American sculptors People from Bozeman, Montana 1949 births Living people People from Belgrade, Montana 21st-century American sculptors Sculptors from Montana