Wind kinetic sculpture, as the name implies, is to rotate automatically in a windy environment. They are usually made of metal, such as stainless steel, iron, corten steel. There are many shapes of metal wind sculptures, and when they rotate outdoors, they will attract everyone’s attention.
During the festival, flashes of copper and the occasional flickering of stained-glass windows draw attention regardless of the wind.
“They are hard to miss, because everything that moves is conspicuous: pampas grass, weeping willows, if it moves, you tend to look like that. So in a way, I took advantage of that,” said Oklahoma City-based artist Dean Immel. .
Every year for the past two decades, Immel has installed dozens of his Rite of Spring kinetic sculptures at Sculpture Park in downtown Oklahoma, which have become a dazzling sight at a painting festival.
Festival 2022 co-chair Kristen Thorkelson said: “It really adds to the quirkiness to the overall feel of the festival venue and people really love them.”
After being canceled in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic and taking place in June 2021, the longtime Oklahoma City Arts Festival has returned to its regular April dates and times. The free festival will run until April 24 in and around the Bicentennial Park between the Civic Center and City Hall.
“Dean has been a staple of the festival for decades,” said 2022 festival co-chair Jon Semtner, “just to see…the hundreds of pieces of art swirling in the wind, it’s so special.”
Although Immel has become the festival’s most popular exhibitor in the past 20 years or so – he was selected as a featured artist before the 2020 event was cancelled – the Oklahoma native still sees himself as an unlikely artist.
“No one in high school or college would have thought that I would become an artist – even in my 30s, when I was doing architecture. “Dean Imel, artist? You must be joking. smile.
“But a lot of art requires a willingness to go out there and get dirty… For me, there is not much difference between being a plumber and what I do. The skills and talents are there, they just disappeared. in the other direction.”
Imel graduated from Harding High School in Oklahoma and holds a degree in Engineering and Applied Science from Yale University.
“I worked in a dirty construction shop for over 20 years and I really enjoyed it,” he said. “I was told a long time ago that most people change careers three times…and I almost did. So I think in a way, I’m back to normal.”
One of seven children, Immel was named after his father and shared his talents in architecture and engineering. The elder Imel, who died in 2019, worked as a senior civil engineer at Dolese, leading a number of projects including the construction of the Cox Convention Center (now Prairie Surf Studios) and the Bricktown Canal.
Before becoming a sculptor, young Imel started a large-scale concrete pumping business in Oklahoma City with his father-in-law Robert Maidt.
“We did a lot of the tall buildings and bridge decks you see in central Oklahoma,” said Immel. “Throughout your life you acquire different skills. I learned how to weld and braze because… the most important thing for me is to maintain the equipment in the workshop.”
After the sale of the construction business, Imel and his wife Marie are in the rental business, where he fixes broken things and maintains them.
Immel first saw kinetic sculpture when he and his wife were on vacation with another couple, stopping at an art exhibit in Beaver Creek, Colorado. Another couple decided to buy the kinetic sculpture, but Immel said he dissuaded them after seeing the price tag.
“That was over 20 years ago… the thing they were looking at was $3,000, shipping was $600, and they still had to install it. I looked at her and—the famous last words—I said, “Oh my God, guys, there’s no hundred dollar stuff in there. Let me make you one,” Immel recalls. “Of course, secretly I wanted to make one for myself, and it was easier to justify making two instead of one. But they said, “Of course.”
He did a little research, applied his experience and created an approximate copy of the sculpture that his friend chose.
“I think they have it somewhere else. But it’s not mine, so to speak. I just made something for them, as they saw and wanted. I had an idea for my wife, who was preparing to celebrate her 50th anniversary,” said Immel.
After making a sculpture for his wife’s birthday, Imel began to experiment and create more dynamic pieces, which he planted in his backyard. His neighbor Susie Nelson worked for the festival for many years, and when she saw the sculpture, she encouraged him to apply.
“I think I took four and everything I took there was probably 3 feet taller than the tallest thing I was selling there right now. Everything I did was huge because that’s what I was looking at at Denver Arrived… We were there for a whole week and on the last day we sold one for $450. I was so upset. Everyone rejected me, ”recalls Immel.
“When I brought things home, my wife said: “Can’t you just build something small for a change? Does it always have to be something big? I listened to her. Look, the festival is inviting me.” we’ll be back next year… narrowing things down, we sold two before the show.
A few years later, Immel began adding glass shards to add color to his dynamic work. He also modified the brass molds he made for the rotating sculptures.
“I used diamonds, I used ovals. At one point I even had a piece called “fallen leaves” and all the cups on it were basically leaf-shaped – I carved it by hand. I have some DNA because every time I do something like this, it always hurts me and bleeds me … But I just love creating things that move and I want people to love and use them them to the maximum,” Imai Er. said.
“Price is important to me…because when we grow up, me and all my brothers, we won’t have much. So I’m very sensitive to the fact that I want to get something from someone. can be placed in the backyard without spending a fortune.”
“There are other artists doing this kind of stuff, but he takes a lot of pride in the little details – the bearings, the materials – so this is the final cut,” says Sam Turner. “I know my parents have a product that has been in our home for over 15 years. It still spins great. He has a really great product that he talks to a lot of people about.”
Immel made about 150 wind sculptures at this year’s festival, which he estimates took him about four months over the past year. He and his family, including his daughter, husband and grandson, spent the weekend before the event working on his sculpture.
“This has really been a great hobby for me…. It has grown over the years, and hell, I’m 73 years old and my wife is 70 years old. Our age People are athletic, but I’ll tell you, if you look at all of us settled there, it’s work. We make it fun,” said Immel.
“We see it as a family project… we do it every spring, it’s almost a coming-of-age ceremony.”
Post time: Sep-25-2022
