''Magic Grove'' is a

public art Public art is art in any media whose form, function and meaning are created for the general public through a public process. It is a specific art genre with its own professional and critical discourse. Public art is visually and physically acce ...

work by artist Nancy Metz White. It is located in Enderis Playfield, which is northwest of downtown

Milwaukee Milwaukee ( ), officially the City of Milwaukee, is both the most populous and most densely populated city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin and the county seat of Milwaukee County. With a population of 577,222 at the 2020 census, Milwaukee ...

Wisconsin Wisconsin () is a state in the upper Midwestern United States. Wisconsin is the 25th-largest state by total area and the 20th-most populous. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake M ...

. It was installed in November 2006 and dedicated in May 2007.

Description

''Magic Grove'' consists of three brightly painted trees made of salvaged metal, a brick walkway and artist-designed benches. The trunks of the trees are made of steel plate, and the canopies are a collage of reclaimed forge flashings painted in greens, blues, reds and yellows. The flashings are welded to create a smooth surface across each tree canopy, interrupted occasionally by orange bird forms that jut vertically and perpendicularly from the top of each sculpture. The three trees are set into a circular plaza that is bright blue. Green and blue benches of varied sizes and heights surround the work.

Commissioning process

The project received funding initially through the Milwaukee Arts Board as part of a larger, two-year effort to renovate a recreational park managed by the

Milwaukee Public Schools Milwaukee Public Schools (MPS) is the largest school district in Wisconsin. As of the 2015–16 school year, MPS served 75,568 students in 154 schools and had 9,636 full-time equivalent (FTE) staff positions. The Milwaukee Public Schools system i ...

. Several neighborhood associations, local businesses and the Department of Public Works partnered to implement the renovation. The Enderis Park Neighborhood Association president said that partners "wanted a piece of art in the park to be the exclamation point on our joint effort." Neighbors and White collaborated to raise funds for the sculpture.

References

Public art in the United States Culture of Milwaukee 2006 sculptures Steel sculptures in Wisconsin {{Public-art-stub